(Mat Hayward/Getty Images)

Lyft slumps on surprise operating loss and disappointing Q1 outlook

Lyft — which has a $6.7 billion market cap — announced that it would buy back up to $1 billion in shares.

2/10/26 4:05PM

Lyft is down 17% in premarket trading as of 5:10 a.m. ET on Wednesday after announcing a Q4 sales miss and weak guidance for the current quarter after the bell yesterday.

For the first three months of 2026, Lyft expects:

Adjusted EBITDA between $120 million and $140 million, a lower midpoint than the $140 million the Street had been expecting.
Between $4.86 billion and $5 billion in gross bookings, yielding a midpoint that’s marginally ahead of the $4.9 billion analysts are penciling in.

Lyft’s $188.4 million operating loss in 2025 — a hit from an “unexpected” increase in rivals’ price promotion, as the company detailed on its earnings call — also surprised investors. Worries around that drop overshadowed results from Lyft’s most profitable quarter on record.

For the last three months of 2025, Lyft reported:

Adjusted EBITDA of $154.1 million, compared to the $147 million analysts polled by FactSet were expecting.
Revenue of $1.6 billion, lower than the $1.7 billion Wall Street was penciling in. The company noted its revenue took a $168 million hit from “from certain legal, tax, and regulatory reserve changes and settlements.”
$5.1 billion in gross bookings, slightly ahead of the $5 billion analysts had forecast.

CEO David Risher said in a statement that 2025 “was an incredible year in Lyft’s comeback story,” adding that “as we look ahead, we are entering a transformational phase for Lyft — 2026 will be the year of the AV with deployments in the US and overseas.”

Lyft — which has a market cap of about $6.7 billion — also announced an additional stock buyback of up to $1 billion. The company previously announced that it authorized $750 million of buybacks in May.

Matt Phillips9h

Nasdaq Composite enters correction territory, joining small-cap Russell 2000

The Nasdaq Composite closed down 10.9% from its high of 24,019.99 — reached during intraday trading on October 29 — putting the tech-heavy benchmark conclusively into a “correction.”

A correction is Wall Street’s term of art for a sell-off that’s graver than a garden-variety slump, but not quite as dire as a bear market. (A bear market commences when prices are down 20% from a peak.)

While the proximate cause in the Nasdaq turndown seems to be t he war — the Composite is down more than 5% since the start of the conflict on February 28 — it’s worth noting that the index had been stalled out for three months prior to that.

At least Nasdaq investors aren’t alone: the small-cap Russell 2000 slipped into a correction last Friday. The S&P 500 has held up better, relatively speaking, though it, too, is down more than 7% from its intraday high of 7,002.28, which it touched on January 28.

Markets sell off as Mideast conflict shows no sign of ending

The S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, and Russell 2000 all fell while oil rose.

Toby Bochan9h

Max Knoblauch13h

Hertz and Avis Budget appear to be benefiting as travelers balk at airport wait times

As the Department of Homeland Security shutdown drags on, resulting in some excruciating airport wait times, rental car companies Avis and Hertz are seeing a boost.

Both companies are up more than 10% on Thursday, continuing a weeklong trend of trading momentum. From market close on March 20 to midday Thursday, Avis shares are up about 44%, while Hertz shares are up 24%.

Would-be flyers may be pivoting from sky to highway, even as gas prices climb. According to TravelPulse, search traffic for Hertz is up 15% in recent days.

The TSA is experiencing the longest wait times in its 24-year history, officials have said. Airfares rising as jet fuel prices remain elevated is likely adding to travelers’ decision.

Hertz Reports Spike in Car Rental Searches as US Airports Deal With Long TSA Lines

Would-be flyers may be pivoting from sky to highway, even as gas prices climb. According to TravelPulse, search traffic for Hertz is up 15% in recent days.

The TSA is experiencing the longest wait times in its 24-year history, officials have said. Airfares rising as jet fuel prices remain elevated is likely adding to travelers’ decision.

Saleah Blancaflor13h

US gas prices increase $1 in 1 month as markets expect $4 per gallon in coming days

As gas demand remains on the rise in the midst of spring break season and crude oil prices rise as hopes the Iran war will draw down decrease, gas prices have steadily risen.

According to the American Automobile Association, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas is up $0.10 from the previous week and up $1 since last month. AAA reports that there was a steep rise from $2.98 on February 26 to $3.98 as of March 26.

AAA said that average gas prices could hit $4 per gallon in the next few days, which would mark the first time since August 2022 that they’ve hit that level.

According to the Energy Information Administration, demand for gas rose last week from 8.72 million barrels per day to 8.92 million. The data also shows that domestic gas supply fell from 244 million barrels to 241.4 million. Meanwhile, gas production grew last week, averaging 9.7 million barrels per day.

Prediction markets show traders pricing in a 61% chance the price of gas could surpass $4 by the end of the month. As AAA projects that gas prices could continue to rise in the next few weeks, markets also imply there’s a 42% and 40% chance gas could finish roughly around $4.02 or $4.04 per gallon, respectively, by March 31.

(Event contracts are offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC — probabilities referenced or sourced from KalshiEx LLC or ForecastEx LLC.)

National gas prices increase one dollar in one month

AAA said that average gas prices could hit $4 per gallon in the next few days, which would mark the first time since August 2022 that they’ve hit that level.

(Event contracts are offered through Robinhood Derivatives, LLC — probabilities referenced or sourced from KalshiEx LLC or ForecastEx LLC.)

Max Knoblauch14h

Ethanol players climb following the Trump administration’s move to waive summer gas regulations

Ethanol-exposed companies are climbing on Thursday, following the Trump administration’s move yesterday to waive summertime limitations on the sale of E15 gas, a blend of fuel containing 15% ethanol.

Sale of the higher-ethanol blend is limited in about half of the US over the summer months to lessen smog. Including this year, those limitations have been waived for five summers in a row. According to Axios reporting, E15 typically costs about $0.10 to $0.40 less per gallon while delivering slightly lower fuel economy.

Ethanol companies are climbing on the decision, with Rex American Resources up more than 5%, Green Plains up 3%, and Gevo up about 2%. Rex and Gevo also closed higher on Wednesday.