Exhibit 99.1
Square Updates First Quarter 2020 Revenue and Gross Profit Outlook forCOVID-19
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif - Square (NYSE:SQ) has been closely monitoring the impact ofCOVID-19 as the environment evolves. The company has focused first on the health and safety of its employees, customers, and local communities, and prioritized investments and products that help address the needs of its customers during this time.
Prior to the impact ofCOVID-19 in the U.S., Square achieved strong growth during the first two months of the quarter. In January and February, gross profit increased 47% year over year, or 51% year over year excluding Caviar from the 2019 period, driven by momentum across both its Seller and Cash App ecosystems. In January and February, Seller ecosystem gross profit grew 32% year over year, and Cash App ecosystem gross profit grew 118% year over year.
Starting in March, the effects ofCOVID-19 began to impact the company’s growth, in particular due to a slowdown in gross processing volume (GPV) for its Seller ecosystem. While the beginning of March was relativelyin-line with the company’s expectations, over the trailingten-day period Seller GPV has declined by approximately 25% year over year, with greater declines in recent days. This has offset relative strength in the Cash App ecosystem, where the impact on gross profit growth has been less pronounced.
As a result, Square is revising its growth expectations for the first quarter of 2020 and now expects to report total net revenue in the range of $1.30 to $1.34 billion and gross profit in the range of $515 to $525 million. This range assumes a further deceleration in overall GPV through the last week of March, beyond the levels we have seen in recent days. The company expects to report first quarter 2020 net income (loss) per share, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted EPS that are below the most recent respective guidance ranges provided as of March 5, 2020 following our convertible debt issuance and earnings on February 26, 2020. Given the uncertainty aroundCOVID-19, Square is withdrawing its full-year 2020 guidance and expects to provide a further update on its first quarter 2020 earnings call in May.
In addition, Square is posting a presentation on its Investor Relations website, which includes materials from its originally-planned Investor Day that highlight the long-term potential for its Seller and Cash App ecosystems, and provides an overview of its market opportunity and unit economics through the fourth quarter 2019.
Square will host a conference call and webcast at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time/5:00 p.m. Eastern Time today, March 24, 2020 to discuss this update. The domesticdial-in for the call is (877)683-2081. The Conference ID is 9374557. To listen to a live audio webcast, please visit Square’s Investor Relations website athttp://square.com/investors. An audio replay will be available following the call.