While WeWork gears up for its highly anticipated initial public offering, it is trying to shape its narrative to view its losses as “investments.”
CFO Artie Minson said that the company hopes to emphasize the difference between its investments and actually losing money.
The company said it finished the first-quarter with a $264 million loss, narrowing its deficit by about $10 million from the same time last year. Its revenue has also more than doubled to $728.3 million due to its expansion into new international markets
Still, public market investors have penalized Uber and Lyft for their billion in losses and inability to become profitable.
WeWork’s model still relies heavily on funding from private investors, which has led them to their $47 billion valuation. Regardless, public markets want to see profits when asking to pay a high price.