Lyft Turns to a Loss After Reserve Charges

The Tip Desk · November 11, 2026 · 3 min read

Gross Bookings reached a record $5.6 billion as year-over-year growth slowed to 17% and a $117.9 million legal, tax, and regulatory charge produced a $9.7 million net loss.

Lyft, Inc. (LYFT) reported a $9.7 million net loss for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, a 121% decline from a year earlier, after a $117.9 million impact from certain legal, tax, and regulatory reserve changes and settlements.

The ride-hailing platform said $69.1 million of that charge was included as a reduction to revenue. Revenue was $1.8 billion, up 8% year over year, or $1.9 billion excluding that revenue impact. Net (loss) income as a percentage of Gross Bookings was (0.2)%, compared with 1.0% in the year-ago quarter.

Gross Bookings reached a record $5.6 billion, up 17% year over year. That pace slowed from 23% year-over-year growth in the second quarter, after having accelerated from 19% in the first quarter. Adjusted EBITDA rose 47% year over year to $203.9 million, with Adjusted EBITDA margin of 3.6% of Gross Bookings versus 2.9% a year earlier.

Active Riders reached a record 31.6 million, up 10% year over year, the eighth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth. Rides reached a record 273.5 million, up 10% year over year. The company said rides growth versus the prior year accelerated sequentially in North America, with momentum in both the U.S. and Canada, and that a record number of North American rideshare rides were linked to a partnership. Lyft Urban Solutions posted an all-time high quarter.

Chief Executive Officer David Risher said customer obsession drove what the company described as its best financial performance ever, and that AV partnerships are preparing Lyft to be a hybrid operator. Chief Financial Officer Michael Brous said strong execution led to rides acceleration in North America and that the company surpassed $1 billion in trailing twelve-month cash generation for the fifth straight quarter.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $328.4 million. Free cash flow was $294.7 million. For the trailing twelve months, net cash provided by operating activities was $1.2 billion and free cash flow was $1.1 billion. Cash and cash equivalents were $1.31 billion at September 30, 2026.

The company announced Lyft Go in the U.S., a membership program in which members earn up to 8% back in Lyft Credits on every ride, and introduced Alcove, a dedicated global premium chauffeuring brand for corporate travel programs launching early 2027. Since September, Lyft has been matching riders to fully autonomous Waymo vehicles on the Lyft app in Nashville, and in October it opened an 80,000-square-foot depot.

For the fourth quarter of 2026, Lyft expects Gross Bookings of approximately $5.74 billion to $5.94 billion, up approximately 13% to 17% year over year, and Adjusted EBITDA of approximately $188 million to $213 million, up approximately 22% to 38% year over year. Adjusted EBITDA margin is expected at approximately 3.3% to 3.6% of Gross Bookings. The company said it has not provided a GAAP equivalent to that non-GAAP outlook because of uncertainty around reconciling items including stock-based compensation, income tax, legal, tax, and regulatory reserve changes and settlements, and costs related to acquisitions.