Wayfair’s first-quarter earnings beat Wall Street expectations as the home furnishings retailer addressed how tariffs would affect the business.
In the quarter, net loss was $113 million, or 89 cents per diluted share, versus $248 million, or $2.06 per diluted share, in the year-before period. Adjusted for one-time events, the company reported, net earnings were $12 million, or 10 cents per diluted share, versus an adjusted net loss of $39 million, or 32 cents per diluted share, in the year-previous quarter.
A Zacks Investment Research analyst consensus estimate anticipated an 18 cent per share loss in the quarter on revenues of $2.71 billion.
Net revenue was $2.73 billion, essentially flat to the year-earlier quarter. Operating loss was $122 million versus $235 million in the year-prior period.
In a conference call, Niraj Shah, Wayfair CEO said the company has a view on and understanding of what it needs to do regarding suppliers and customers. He said Wayfair suppliers are competitive, diverse as to location and, ultimately, substitutable, which should work in the company’s favor. In the face of tariffs imposed in 2019, Wayfair suppliers managed to keep costs down, generating volume to compensate for the cost differential. He maintained Wayfair tools for suppliers to track and promote their online activity gives them a means to operate more effectively, which can be another factor that would help the retailer deal with tariff-related effects. Shah particularly emphasized the value of using Wayfair advertising to manage demand as vendors deal with margin pressure.
In announcing the first quarter results, Shah said, “Despite persistent category volatility which marked a fourth consecutive year beginning with contraction, we were able to once again outperform our peers and take healthy market share while driving meaningful improvements in profitability. Year-over-year growth excluding the impact of Germany came in nicely positive, driven by the U.S. business up 1.6% against a category that we estimate declined over the same time frame. Tariffs are clearly top of mind for everyone: While there’s a lot of uncertainty in the broader economy, we have direct line of sight and strong conviction on what we need to do for both our customers and our suppliers.”
In looking ahead, Shah said that “our strategy remains clear: continue gaining share through disciplined execution, deepen our partnerships with suppliers and invest judiciously in high-ROI growth initiatives. We’ve deliberately built a platform that thrives in dynamic conditions: flexible, resilient and efficient. With strong momentum, a healthy balance sheet and a sharpened operating model, we’re confident in our ability to navigate what’s ahead and emerge even stronger.”
