By Stephen Council
A financial report from Lyft this week proved that everyone needs an editor.
On Tuesday, the San Francisco-based ride-hailing company reported its earnings for the three months ending in December. But a typo in its press release oversold the company’s future projections. In less than 60 minutes of after-hours trading, Lyft’s market cap jumped up and down by billions of dollars.
Before reporting any earnings on Tuesday, Lyft was worth $4.77 billion. The press release arrived at 1 p.m. Pacific time, and the share price skyrocketed: In 40 minutes, the market cap hit $7.6 billion. At this point, Lyft chief financial officer Erin Brewer corrected the mistake in a call with investors, CNBC reported, and a tumble followed. By 2 p.m., Lyft’s stock had plunged back down, and the company settled into an improved but not mind-boggling valuation for the evening, at $5.5 billion.
The typo was tucked inside a section of Lyft’s press release titled, “FY’24 Directional Commentary,” which outlined the company’s hopes for the next year. One of the bullet points said that Lyft’s “Adjusted EBITDA margin,” which shows how much Lyft is making in profit from its ride bookings, would improve by “500 basis points,” or 5% in 2024. Such an increase would be huge — a 5% jump in that metric, for Lyft, would likely mean the company was turning hundreds of millions of dollars more in profit.
On the earnings call, Brewer set the record straight. Whoever wrote Lyft’s press release had added an extra zero; the company is actually projecting “50 basis points” of improvement, or 0.5%. The company has since updated the press release.
Our Take from R. Michael Brown Consulting
An editor plays a vital role in reviewing press releases to ensure accuracy, clarity, and adherence to journalistic standards.
They meticulously scrutinize content for grammatical errors, factual inaccuracies, and inconsistencies in messaging. Editors possess a keen eye for detail, ensuring that the release effectively communicates the intended message to its target audience.
Moreover, they help maintain the credibility of the organization or individual issuing the release by upholding professional standards and preventing potentially damaging mistakes. In this case, the volatility of Lyft’s stock price could have been avoided with an editor review.
Ultimately, an editor’s expertise ensures that press releases are polished, professional, and impactful, maximizing their effectiveness in engaging the media and public.
Need an editor?
