Yahoo Finance Just Eat UK hits 1 billion orders as US growth lags
Takeaway platform Just Eat (JET.L) said it had seen a 25% increase in orders in its third quarter compared with the previous year, processing 266 million takeaways.
According to Reuters, the total number was slightly worse than expected by analysts at ING bank, who had forecast orders to rise 35% from a year earlier to 287 million.
The delivery company clocked strong growth in the UK, with orders up 51% compared with the previous year, however this lagged in the US — its second largest market — where growth only hit 3%.
In Q3, Just Eat UK surpassed the 1 billion orders milestone since its foundation.
Gross transaction value amounted to €6.8bn (£5.8bn, $7.85bn) in the third quarter of 2021, up 23% compared with the same period of 2020.
"With most of the world returning to pre-pandemic life, our growth in the third quarter of 2021 has remained strong. Just Eat Takeaway.com is well-positioned for autumn and winter, our traditional growth season," CEO Jitse Groen said in a statement.
The company's stock fell 3.8% in early trade following the update.
Analysts noted that Just Eat's strategy has differed from its peers in that it has refrained from pushing into the on-demand delivery market, which some say could become a "strategic necessity".
The company shares a market with Uber Eats, and Door Dash, in the US, and Deliveroo and Delivery Hero in Europe, among others.
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"On top of investing heavily in delivery, which now accounts for around 45% of global orders, the more challenging economics associated with grocery delivery and dark stores could continue to impact profitability," said Dan Thomas, senior analyst at Third Bridge.
"Significant investment in grocery would delay any return to Just Eat’s marketplace-led margin profile."
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