Just Eat Takeaway.com NV (LON:JET) said it will prioritise market share over adjusted underlying earnings (EBITDA) as it expects further order growth acceleration this year.
The food delivery service said it will continue to invest to drive further growth and market share gain, in line with the fourth quarter of 2020.
READ: Just Eat Takeaway fighting to stand still in battle with Deliveroo and Uber Eats
It did not provide an outlook due to the ongoing integration between Just Eat and Takeaway.com, which cost a €102mln one-off charge alongside the proposed Grubhub acquisition.
In the year to December 31, loss before tax ballooned 67% to €147mln, though revenue rocketed 391% to €2bn.
In fact, it processed 588mln orders in 2020, representing a 42% increase compared with 2019.
The FTSE 100 firm said the share of Delivery orders increased to 26% in 2020 from 18% in 2019, while the segment generated positive revenue fewer fulfilment costs despite low delivery fees.
It said “only clear market leadership positions will lead to sufficient scale, high order density, and network effects which enable healthy Delivery margins in the long-run”.
Just Eat said it is “the clear market leader” in the UK, in terms of orders, which surged 88% in the first two months of 2020, with Delivery up 600%, and it expects to gain further market share in Britain this year.
"The pace of acquisitions comes with integration risk, while the shares are extremely highly valued. Competition in the space is intense and, in the post-pandemic world, it is impossible to guarantee that its business model will continue to generate such strong growth as the easing of lockdown restrictions allow the global population to visit restaurants in person once more," commented Richard Hunter at interactive investor.
"Despite the challenges which the company will face as it continues its development, investors are very much giving the company the benefit of the doubt for now, with the market consensus of the shares coming in at a strong buy.”
Shares rose 2% to 6,958p on Wednesday morning.
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