Shopify revenue doubles amid shift to online shopping in COVID-19

Shopify Inc. is reporting $36 million US in profits in the second quarter on a nearly doubling of revenues as it reaped the benefits of COVID-19 lockdowns.

The Ottawa-based tech company says it earned 29 cents per diluted share for the three months ended June 30, compared with a loss of 26 cents per share or $28.7 million US in the prior year.

Reporting in U.S. dollars, adjusted earnings reached $129.4 million or $1.05 per share, up from $10.7 million or 10 cents per share in the second quarter of 2019.

Revenues surged 97 per cent to $714.3 million from $362 million a year earlier.

Shopify was expected to report a net loss of 59 cents per share or adjusted profit of one cent per share on $513.8 million in revenues, according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.

The company says the ongoing effect of the pandemic has been to accelerate the shift of purchase habits to e-commerce with new stores created on the Shopify platform growing 71 per cent in the quarter.