Urban Company shares drop as losses surge in first results after IPO
Indian home-services platform Urban Company saw its stock fall over 6% on Monday after reporting a much wider-than-expected quarterly loss—its first results since going public.
The company, which debuted on the market in September with a 57.5% listing premium, slipped to ₹147.01, dropping as much as 6.8% intraday. As of 9:52 a.m. IST, the stock pared some losses but remained 2.2% lower, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Urban Company posted a ₹593.3 million loss (~$7M) for the September quarter — a dramatic jump from just ₹18.2 million in losses a year earlier.
This comes after a strong showing in the previous quarter, when the company recorded a ₹69.4 million profit.
While the company’s core home-services business grew 19.3% in transaction value, profits from that segment plunged over 61%.
Urban Company’s new “Insta Help” service — a fast-booking feature for domestic workers — booked a ₹429.1 million loss on its own.
Analysts at Morgan Stanley flagged uncertainty around when (or if) the new service will break even, citing unclear investment requirements.
Urban Company warned that due to continued investment in Insta Help, the company expects further losses in upcoming quarters.
Since listing in mid-September, the stock has now fallen over 9%, trading below its debut price.
