Roku reports bigger-than-expected quarterly loss on lower customer spending

Roku on Thursday reported a bigger fourth-quarter loss than expected, as it grappled with intense competition and lower customer spending, sending the streaming platform’s shares down about 15% in extended trading.

It reported a loss of 55 cents per share, above analysts’ expectations of a loss of 52 cents, according to LSEG estimates.

“While we will face difficult YoY growth rate comparisons in streaming services distribution and a challenging M&E (media & entertainment) environment for the rest of the year, we expect to maintain our Q4 2023 YoY platform growth rates in Q1,” Roku said in a statement.

The streaming platform expects first-quarter net revenue of $850 million, compared with analysts’ estimates of $834.1 million, according to LSEG data.

For the fourth quarter, average revenue per user (ARPU) slipped 4% to $39.92.