06:41 AM EDT, 05/09/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Lyft's ( LYFT ) shares rose early Friday as it unexpectedly swung to a first-quarter profit amid double-digit gains in gross bookings, while the ride-hailing company forecast continued growth for the key metric in the ongoing three-month period.

Gross bookings, a key indicator of the scale and impact of its overall platform, are anticipated to come in between roughly $4.41 billion and $4.57 billion for the second quarter, the company said late Thursday. The guidance range represents annual growth of around 10% to 14%, while the current consensus on FactSet is for $4.49 billion. In the March quarter, the metric advanced 13% year over year to $4.16 billion, topping the Street's view for $4.14 billion.

The company's stock spiked 7.6% in the most recent premarket activity.

Rides growth is pegged at a mid-teens range year over year in the current quarter, "driven by strong, durable demand, growth in active riders and growth in frequency," the company said in prepared remarks. "Rides in (the second quarter) historically pick up from (the first quarter) as summer approaches," according to the firm. Rides increased by 16% to 218.4 million in the prior three-month period.

During a late Thursday earnings call with analysts, Chief Executive David Risher said the company's pricing strategy is to "always be competitive." Average prices in the first quarter were "still lower" than the previous quarter, but were up "modestly" year over year, Chief Financial Officer Erin Brewer said on the call, according to a FactSet transcript.

Lyft ( LYFT ) projects adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization margin, which is calculated as a percentage of gross bookings, at roughly 2.6% to 2.8% in the second quarter. The metric stood at 2.6% in the March quarter.

The company reported first-quarter net income of $0.01 per share, compared with a loss of $0.08 the year before, beating the average analyst estimate for a $0.01 loss. Revenue inclined 14% to $1.45 billion, but fell short of the Street's view for $1.47 billion. The firm had 24.2 million active riders during the quarter, up 11% from last year.

"Building on our strong foundation in core areas, we're now turning our attention to regions with high car dependency and limited public transportation, presenting significant growth opportunities," Lyft ( LYFT ) said in the prepared remarks.

Last month, the company agreed to acquire European mobility app Freenow for 175 million euros ($196.5 million) in cash. Lyft ( LYFT ) expects the acquisition to nearly double its total addressable market to more than 300 billion personal vehicle trips per year and expand its services to nine more countries in Europe. The deal is anticipated to be completed in the second half.

Additionally, the company's board of directors boosted its share buyback plan to $750 million.