Match Group, the company behind dating apps including Tinder and Hinge, forecast better than expected revenues in the current quarter as the Covid vaccine rollout and easing restrictions left it optimistic about a “summer of love”.
The Dallas-based company forecast second quarter* revenue of in the range of $680m to $690m, representing growth of 22 to 24 per cent. That exceeded expectations of $678.8m, according to a Refinitiv survey of Wall Street analysts. It is higher than both the 17 per cent increase it reported last year and growth of 19 per cent in 2019 before the pandemic struck.
“As we head into summer, with a growing number of people getting vaccinated, we cannot help but be excited about the future,” chief executive Shar Dubey and chief financial officer Gary Swidler said in a letter to shareholders.
“We are pleased with the way 2021 has begun and are optimistic that the rest of the year will continue this momentum. Looking forward to a summer of love,” they added.
However, the company noted several countries like Brazil, India, Japan and some European markets are experiencing a resurgence in coronavirus cases and said “while we are clearly not out of the woods, we are increasingly optimistic about our business momentum”.
The rosy outlook accompanied a 23 per cent year-on-year increase in first quarter revenues to $668m, exceeding expectations of $650m, as the number of subscribers grew 12 per cent to 11.1m.
It reported net income of $173.8m, or 57 cents a share, compared with a loss of $174.4m, or $1 a share, in the year ago period and ahead of expectations for 40 cents a share.
Match was quick to adapt to pandemic-era dating and people turned to new video chat features to allow them go on virtual dates. More recent efforts to attract users and prompt existing users to reactivate their accounts included a giveaway of 100,000 at-home Covid tests, which were snapped up in less than two hours, and partnerships with reality dating shows like Love Island in the UK.
Match shares rose more than 6 per cent in after-hours trade having ended the day 6.4 per cent lower.
*The piece was amended to reflect the outlook is for the second quarter
