Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE: UBER) on Monday posted a wider third-quarter loss as costs soared at the ride-hailing company, sending shares down 4.4% in after-hours trading.
But the company promised it would be profitable by the end of 2021 as quarterly revenue beat expectations.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi told journalists on a conference call that the company would achieve adjusted EBITDA profitability for the full year of 2021. The move follows a similar announcement by smaller ride-hailing competitor Lyft Inc (NASDAQ:LYFT) on Wednesday.
But Uber at the same time is spending heavily to expand into new business areas and is offering vast promotions to gain market share.
Uber's costs jumped about 33% to $4.92 billion in the latest quarter. Gross bookings, which include ride-hailing, mobility, food delivery and freight payments before costs and other expenses, rose 29.4% from a year earlier to $16.47 billion.
Uber, known for its ride-hailing app available in more than 700 cities worldwide, has vastly diversified its business over the past years.
The company is building out its food delivery and long-haul trucking business, developing self-driving cars, offering banking services to its drivers and even planning commercial passenger drone shuttles by 2023.
Total revenue rose nearly 30% to $3.81 billion, beating estimates of $3.69 billion.
Uber was the biggest of a group of Silicon Valley startups that have gone public this year against the backdrop of a global stock market selloff sparked by trade tensions between the United States and China.
Uber shares began Tuesday down $2.45, or 7.9%, to $28.63
