Clear Secure (NYSE:YOU) surged nearly 12% on Wednesday after the company reported first-quarter results ahead of Wall Street expectations and issued stronger-than-expected guidance for the current quarter.
The identity technology provider posted adjusted earnings per share of $0.38, beating analyst forecasts of $0.31 by $0.07.
Revenue reached $253 million, exceeding consensus estimates of $244.06 million and marking a 19.7% increase from the same period last year.
Second-quarter guidance comes in above expectations
Clear Secure forecast second-quarter revenue between $268 million and $271 million.
The midpoint of $269.5 million came in comfortably above analyst expectations of $256.5 million.
Member growth and bookings accelerate
The company said performance was driven by continued expansion of its customer base and broader operational growth.
Total CLEAR members rose 31.3% year over year to 41.0 million, while Active CLEAR+ members increased 13.0% to 8.2 million.
Total bookings climbed 40.8% year over year to $291.7 million.
“The seeds we planted to build the world’s most trusted, secure identity platform are taking hold at a critical moment,” said Caryn Seidman Becker, chief executive officer of CLEAR.
“Our record first quarter reflects the strength of our platform, combining scale, security and frictionless experiences, positioning CLEAR to define the standard for trusted identity in this new era.”
Margins expand as profitability improves
Operating income totaled $62.0 million during the quarter, representing an operating margin of 24.5%.
Adjusted EBITDA reached $80.6 million, with margin expanding to 31.9%, an increase of 720 basis points from a year earlier.
Net income came in at $56.4 million, equivalent to 22.3% of revenue.
Company raises free cash flow outlook
Clear Secure also lifted its full-year free cash flow guidance from at least $440 million to at least $465 million.
The updated forecast implies minimum year-over-year growth of 35.5%.
During the quarter, the company returned approximately $56.4 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.
Clear additionally declared a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, payable on June 24.