What's going on?

Food delivery app Deliveroo raised its revenue growth forecast on Thursday � but it wasn�t enough to stop investors throwing its stock on the barbie.

What does this mean?

Doorbell dining has been one of the biggest winners of the pandemic, with would-be eater-outers forced to eat in instead. But as restaurant restrictions recede, so too has Deliveroo�s growth. While gross transaction value, a.k.a. GTV � the total amount of customer spending in the company�s app � rose 130% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 2020, it was just 76% higher in the second quarter.

Investors had been expecting that growth to slow further still � but Deliveroo�s latest figures suggest things won�t be as bad as thought. The firm now anticipates GTV to be 50-60% higher than last year across the whole of 2021, up from previous forecasts of 30-40%. That positive update initially sent Deliveroo�s beleaguered share price up 5% on Thursday � before broader market declines helped drag it back down into negative territory.

Why should I care?

The bigger picture: Apples and oranges.
GTV growth is one thing, but profitability is another � and Deliveroo also warned extra investment in unspecified �growth opportunities� would hurt its profit margin this year. It�s previously shown interest in setting up more takeout-only kitchens, as well as grocery delivery partnerships with major supermarket chains. While investors may balk at the expenditure involved, Deliveroo�s controversial dual-class share structure means the company�s executives can press ahead regardless.

Zooming out: Dim sums.
Deliveroo�s share structure was one reason its initial public offering (IPO) flopped�� and its shares remain stubbornly below their opening-day price. But Chinese IPOs on US stock exchanges are flopping for a different reason: the Chinese government is cracking down further on overseas listings, just days after it hit Didi with a blindside that sent the ride-hailing firm�s shares down 20% from its own IPO price.