New York, Feb 18, 2026, 19:42 EST — After-hours
DoorDash Inc shares closed up about 7% at $173.38 on Wednesday and swung sharply in after-hours trading after the delivery company issued its first-quarter outlook. The stock traded between $151.95 and $198.81 during the session and extended trade.
That outlook is landing at an awkward time for the whole delivery space. DoorDash is pushing deeper into grocery, retail and international markets, while it spends to rebuild its core technology so its brands run on one platform.
Investors track marketplace gross order value, or GOV, a measure of the dollar value of orders placed on the app, for signs customers are still ordering through higher prices. They also watch adjusted EBITDA, a common measure of operating profit before interest, taxes and non-cash costs, for evidence margins are not being traded away.
DoorDash forecast first-quarter marketplace GOV of $31.0 billion to $31.8 billion and adjusted EBITDA of $675 million to $775 million. It said the profit guide reflects incremental investments in Deliveroo, an estimated $20 million direct impact from severe storms Gianna and Fern in the U.S., and higher Dasher costs per order. In the December quarter, total orders rose 32% to 903 million, revenue climbed 38% to $3.955 billion and net income was $213 million. (DoorDash Investor Relations)
Wall Street had been looking for first-quarter GOV of $29.61 billion, LSEG data showed, while the adjusted EBITDA range came in below the Street view of $798.22 million. “The convenience proposition is resonating strongly with consumers,” said Rachel Wolff, an analyst at eMarketer. Rivals such as Instacart and Uber Eats have been pressing harder with partnerships and promotions. (Reuters)
Chief executive Tony Xu called the global tech rebuild “a massive and expensive undertaking” on a conference call, adding, “I wish that the tech stack were already here.” DoorDash said it had more than 56 million active users and about 35 million paid members across DashPass, Wolt+ and Deliveroo Plus. Costs rose with the push, with research and development expense up 41% and sales and marketing up 31% in the quarter. (AP News)
A filing showed DoorDash furnished the results and a shareholder letter in a Form 8-K on Wednesday and posted supplemental investor materials on its website. The filing was signed by Xu. (Streetinsider)
But spending is now the swing factor. If the platform overhaul runs over budget, or if Dasher pay and incentives rise faster than order growth, the first-quarter profit range could tighten.
Traders will get a clearer read when regular U.S. trading resumes on Thursday, Feb. 19, after the after-hours whipsaw. The next big catalyst is DoorDash’s first-quarter report, when it must show whether GOV growth can hold as costs cool.
