Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

Fitbits are selling like hotcakes, but the company may face a rough year ahead

By Christian de Looper May 5, 2016

fitbit sleep goals blaze — Fitbit

Fitbit may have sold devices like hotcakes in the first quarter, but its future is still uncertain, with some suggesting that smartwatches from companies like Apple will render Fitbit obsolete.

Despite a serious dip in stocks this afternoon, CEO James Park said we should expect some “exciting new products” before the end of the year — something that’s not all that surprising considering the recent patent filings we’ve seen from the company.

Related: See here for FitBit products and accessories

Fitbit today revealed its earnings for the first quarter of 2016, and while its earnings beat out expectations, what did not beat expectations was its guidance for the second quarter. So much so that Fitbit’s shares fell a hefty 12 percent in after-hours trading. And that’s not even that surprising — in total, Fitbit’s shares have fallen 42 percent this year.

The company reported earnings of 10 cents per share for the first quarter of the year, far exceeding the expected 2 cents per share. Revenues ended up at $505.4 million, again, quite a bit higher than the expected $442.3 million. So what’s the big deal?

The big deal is that Fitbit’s guidance for the second quarter was very light — a lot lighter than was expected. The company projected earnings of between 8 and 11 cents per share for the second quarter, far below the 26 cents that was expected of it.

Still, it’s hard to deny that the company has been outperforming expectations, even amid doubt that it could hold its own with the likes of Apple now in the wearable market. These doubts are largely due to new devices from the company, especially the Fitbit Blaze smartwatch and the Alta fitness tracker. The flip side of that is that Fitbit is likely to benefit from a surge in popularity of wearable devices over the next few years, as long as it’s able to keep up with regular new product releases that appeal to customers.

In fact, the company’s putting its money somewhere — its expenses jumped to a hefty $215 million in the first quarter, up from $79 million in the previous quarter. This is because of an increase in research and development, as well as marketing costs.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Christian de Looper

Contributor

Christian’s interest in technology began as a child in Australia, when he stumbled upon a computer at a garage sale that he…

Business

Best Salesforce alternatives 2023: 7 other CRM tools worth trying

A customer relationship management diagram.

In the realm of sales management, finding the right customer relationship management software (or CRM) is crucial for streamlining your sales funnel, nurturing customer relationships, and boosting your conversion rate. While Salesforce has long been a dominant player in the CRM market, there are a number of compelling alternatives that offer comparable functionalities and features.

This roundup explores seven powerful Salesforce alternatives, analyzing their unique strengths, customizable interfaces, and integration capabilities. Whether you're a small startup, a growing medium-sized business, or an established enterprise, these CRM systems provide diverse solutions to your specific sales management needs. From advanced AI-driven lead prioritization to intuitive visual pipelines, each alternative offers its own benefits that can transform how you approach sales. Ready to level up your sales game? Let's dive in:
Freshsales

Business

Squarespace Courses: Empowering the next-generation of creative entrepreneurs

Squarespace Courses will allow entrepreneurs to create online learning solutions

This content was produced in partnership with Squarespace.
It's been clear from the very start that Squarespace was building and planning something truly special. If you don't already know, you can build professional-quality and beautiful websites through the platform with a remarkably easy tool set. You don't need any knowledge of web design or programming to get started, and you can have a site up in minutes. But thanks to how convenient it all is, it's become something of a go-to platform for digital and online creation. Now, Squarespace is elevating its all-in-one platform even more, offering something new to the next generation of entrepreneurs and creatives, who want to build their brands and monetize their audience. It's called Squarespace Courses, and like its website builder, the tool will allow customers to design and sell beautiful, multimedia courses to their customers.

Course designers will be able to create expansive programs across sequential lessons, using videos, and chapters, all while also offering progress tracking. As is customary for online courses, entrepreneurs can then create an overview of each course, set the prices for admission, and then allow potential students to preview content before making a purchase. Launching August 21st, 2023 this feature is simply not available through other easy-website-building platforms -- it's exclusive to Squarespace.

Deals

Semrush Free Trial: Try the advanced online marketing tool

Marketing will make or break your new venture. A lot more goes into running a traditional or ecommerce business than just registering a new domain, making a website -- even with a Wix free trial -- and calling it a day. Potential customers must be made aware that your business exists, and for that to happen in the digital age, you need to make use of modern online marketing tools. That's a broad field, though, encompassing keyword research, search engine optimization, data analytics, and other elements that can be pretty technical (not to mention intimidating) to the uninitiated. Enter Semrush, one of the best online marketing suites that makes all that stuff easy -- but it's not free. Maybe you want to give it a try before signing up for a premium subscription? If that's the case and you are looking for a Semrush free trial, then you're in luck. Read on. We have all the details for you, below.

Is there a Semrush free trial?