Just Eat serves up strong increase in third quarter

Food delivery group Just Eat lifted its revenue guidance for the full year after reporting a sharp increase in orders in the third quarter.

The FTSE 250 group upped its revenue forecast from £230m to £240m, as it said poor weather over the summer encouraged more people to order meals online.

In the three months to the end of September, orders increased 64% year-on-year, with like-for-like orders growing 48%.

The company said the number of UK orders made via mobile devices in the third quarter grew from 69% in the first half to 74%, of which more than 41% were submitted via its app compared with 38% in the first six months of the year.

Over the period, the group acquired Orderit.ca, in Canada and Nifty Nosh, in Northern Ireland as it continued to expand its business in both regions, while the integration of the Menulog Group, which was acquired in 2015, was in line with expectations.

“Our strategy of investing in technology and marketing to drive growth has delivered orders ahead of management expectations with an acceleration in order momentum,” said group chief executive David Buttress.

“In the context of this performance, we are raising our revenue guidance for the full year.”

Just Eat shares were down 3.31% to 426.20p at 0824 GMT on Tuesday.