Bumble Shares Jump After First Quarter Earnings Report

Shares of dating company Bumble Inc rose 11 percent after news of the company’s earnings were released, with revenue beating analyst expectations.

According to Reuters, the number of total paying users across Bumble properties increased by 7.2 percent to 3 million during the first quarter of this year, increasing revenue to $211.2 million, surpassing analyst expectations of $208.30 million. Bumble apps include its signature apps, Badoo, and French dating app Fruitz among others.

Research firm Apptopia also found that Bumble downloads in the U.S. increased 20.6 percent during the first quarter, and monthly average users rose 13.7 percent compared to the same quarter last year.

Part of the reason for the jump is due to the recent surges of Covid, which has been lucrative for dating apps for attracting and retaining new users.

Bumble also noted that the ongoing war in Ukraine and the fact that the company stopped operations in Russia and Belarus has also had a negative impact, especially on revenue for dating app Badoo, a very popular app in Europe. Bumble lost 60,000 paying users between the fourth and first quarter in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus according to Reuters. It expects an even steeper loss to almost 130,000 in these markets during the second quarter.

Bumble expects revenue for the second quarter to take a hit because of the Ukraine war and come in below analyst expectations of $224.16 million. The company expects revenue to fall between $218 and $221 million, according to Reuters.

Tech subscription revenue across industries has fallen over the past year, including for giants like Netflix and Peleton, which has driven stock prices down in the sector. Over the past year, both Match Group and Bumble stock has fallen about 59 percent, as the notion of continuous growth meets a limit. While Match Group has said there is more opportunity for its dating apps in Asian markets, Western markets have slowed as almost half of their targeted audience has tried a dating app, according to The Wall Street Journal.

But both Bumble and Match Group are focusing their efforts outside of dating to increase their user base and revenue, including Bumble’s announcement that it will expand its BFF app, and launch virtual gifts for purchase later this year. Match Group has hired new CEO Bernard Kim, with a background at Zynga and Electronic Arts, as the company is focused on gamifying its platform and creating more virtual experiences that can be monetized.