Uber delivers a miss in third-quarter earnings as it slowly recovers from the pandemic

• Uber on Thursday released financial results of its third quarter.
• For the three months ended July 31, Uber lost more than $1 billion on revenues of $3.13 billion.
• Shares of the company fell in late trading following the release.

Uber's pandemic recovery isn't happening as quickly as investors would like.

The ride-hailing giant on Thursday revealed third-quarter financials that fell below analyst expectations and sent shares lower in late trading.

Overall losses for the quarter ended Sept. 31 totaled $1.09 billion, on adjusted revenues of $2.81 billion. Analysts polled by Bloomberg had expected an adjusted net loss of $876 million on revenues of $2.82 billion. Losses not including taxes and depreciation were smaller than last quarter, but greater than a year ago.

Uber's stock price sank as much as 5% following the announcement, paring sharp gains from earlier in the week after the company got a pivotal victory in California. Voters there approved Prop. 22 on Tuesday, a controversial measure that allows gig-work companies to classify workers as contractors rather than employees, while also guaranteeing some benefits like minimum earnings and healthcare stipends.

"Despite an uneven pandemic response and broader economic uncertainty, our global scope, diversification, and the team's tireless execution delivered steadily improving results," chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said in a press release.

Deliveries continue to be a bright spot for Uber during the pandemic, with revenues from that segment more than doubling compared to last year.

Uber has yet to turn a profit in its more than 10-year history, though executives have said it will be able to in 2021 on an adjusted basis despite the pandemic, though that milestone was not included in Thursday's release. Executives are likely to be pushed for clarification on that timeline during a conference call with investors later Thursday.

"Rome was not built in a day ... and neither will the ridesharing recovery," Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush, told clients earlier this week. "The overall environment is starting to considerably improve for Uber over the coming quarters with 2Q marking a clear trough in volumes and fundamentals in our opinion."

Lyft, Uber's largest competitor, will report results next week.