Tinder owner forecasts revenue below estimates
The dating app Tinder is shown on a mobile phone in this picture illustration taken Sep 1, 2020. (Photo: REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro)
Match Group forecast fourth-quarter revenue below market estimates on Tuesday, suggesting the Tinder owner's growth could slow as people return to pre-pandemic habits.
The dating industry boomed last year as users relied on video-enabled chat apps to interact online during months-long isolation. But rising vaccinations have encouraged people to step out and meet in person.
Match said it expected fourth-quarter revenue between US$810 million and US$820 million, below analysts' average estimate of US$838.5 million, according to Refinitiv.
The company's business also took a hit from a COVID-19 resurgence in Asia, where fewer people used its video and audio chatting app Azar. The company had acquired the app in this year's purchase of South Korean firm Hyperconnect.
Match, which also owns dating apps Hinge and OkCupid, said revenue rose 25 per cent to US$801.8 million in the quarter ended Sep 30, missing analysts' estimates of about US$802.2 million.
The company added 16.3 million payers, a recently introduced metric that includes all revenue contributers to the company. Revenue per payer rose 8 per cent.
