5 big earnings reports: DoorDash stock races higher on sales beat | Pro Recap

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Investing.com -- Here is your daily Pro Recap of the biggest earnings headlines you may have missed on InvestingPro since yesterday’s close, including upside surprises at DoorDash and DraftKings. Start your free 7-day trial to get this news first.

DoorDash jumps on sales beat

DoorDash (NYSE:DASH) shares were sharply higher in pre-market trading after Q4 revenue of $1.82 billion beat the $1.77B consensus estimate, for a 40% climb over the prior year.

Total orders at the food delivery outfit grew 27% year-over-year to 467M, driven by growth in consumers and consumer engagement and by its acquisition of rival Wolt. Earnings came in at $1.65 per share, $0.02 under analyst expectations.

The company also said COO Christopher Payne is leaving next month, to be replaced by current CFO Prabir Adarkar.

Following the news and the share jump, Wolfe Research raised its DoorDash price target to $90 from $70, while Evercore lowered its own to $91 from the prior $96.

Shares were up 6.7% in the premarket to $66.89.

DraftKings surprises analysts with guidance bump

DraftKings (NASDAQ:DKNG) said it lost $0.53 per share in Q4, far better than the analyst prediction of $0.61 in the red, and the company also beat on revenue at $855.1 million vs. $798.2M expectations.

The company also lifted its full-year 2023 sales outlook to between $2.85B and $3.05B from the prior range of $2.8B to $3B.

Research firm Stifel said the guidance hike "exceeds lofty expectations," even as it maintained its Hold rating and a $17 price target due to the possibility that the revision was already baked into investor expectations; potentially "limited" catalysts for further upward revisions; and continued "market share, regulatory, and new supply risks."

JMP, for its part, said, "Overall, this is one of DKNG's best quarters in recent memory."

Shares were up 6.3% at $17.81 in pre-market trading.

Applied Materials puts in strong quarter

Semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) reported an adjusted bottom line of $2.03 per share for fiscal Q1, better than the $1.93 average analyst estimate, and $6.74B in sales were slightly higher than the $6.69B consensus.

It also provided strong revenue guidance of $6.4B, plus or minus $400 million, against expectations for $6.29B, and an EPS range of $1.66 to $2.02 vs. Street estimates of $1.76.

Goldman Sachs hiked its AMAT price target to $120 from $105 and said, "We increase our CY2023/24 operating EPS estimates, on average, by 17%."

Stifel raised its own price target on the stock to $140, saying, "Even we under-appreciated the significance of trailing-edge demand within Applied's own backlog" and predicting that the company is "poised to handily outperform the industry this year."

Shares were up fractionally in the pre-market at $115.39.

HubSpot crushes estimates

HubSpot (NYSE:HUBS) charged 11% higher in pre-market trading after earnings and guidance smashed expectations.

Q4 EPS came in at $1.11, $0.28 better than the $0.83 analyst estimates, and the company sees Q1 earnings at $0.82 to $0.84, far better than the consensus of 0.59. For the full year, it expects $4.24-$4.32 in earnings vs. the $2.85 Street expectations.

Q4 sales of $469.7M likewise beat the consensus of $446.25M.

After the report, Wolfe Research raised its price target on the stock to $440 from the prior $360.

Shares were recently trading at $361.93 in the pre-market.

Mercedes-Benz sales soar, although 2023 income may falter

Mercedes-Benz Group AG (ETR:MBGn) (OTC:DDAIF) said EBIT rose nearly one-third year-over-year to €5.4B, handily topping the consensus estimates of €4.5B, per Bloomberg.

Partly driving the strength was strong demand for electric vehicles, a key pillar of the company's long-term strategy, with sales of these units surging by 67%.

The company added that it would launch a €4B share buyback program.

That said, Mercedes-Benz said full-year 2023 core earnings will be slightly below the prior-year level amid lingering headwinds from the war in Ukraine, raw material costs, and possible supply chain disruptions.

Frankfurt shares were lately up more than 3%.

Senad Karaahmetovic, Liz Moyer, Scott Kanowsky, Yasin Ebrahim, Davit Kirakosyan, and Sarina Isaacs contributed to this report.