DoorDash, Inc. (NASDAQ:DASH)

Return on Assets (ROA) Trend

The ROA data begins with negative values starting from the quarter ending December 31, 2021, at -6.87%. Subsequently, it declines further, reaching a low point of -14.09% during the quarter ending June 30, 2023. After this trough, a consistent improvement is observed, with ROA increasing steadily through subsequent periods to turn positive by the quarter ending March 31, 2025, at 2.5%. This trend indicates an initial period of declining asset profitability followed by a notable recovery and emergence into positive returns.

Financial Leverage Trend

Financial leverage exhibits a relatively stable upward trend throughout the time frame. Starting at 1.3 in March 31, 2021, it increases gradually with minor fluctuations, peaking at approximately 1.65 around December 31, 2024, before slightly declining to 1.62 in March 31, 2025. The overall rise suggests a modest increase in the use of debt financing or other leverage mechanisms over the years.

Return on Equity (ROE) Trend

ROE data presents a pattern similar to ROA but with amplified volatility. It is negative initially starting from December 31, 2021, at -10.03% and declines further to a low of -20.85% at June 30, 2023. Post this point, a gradual recovery in ROE is apparent, with values improving steadily and eventually turning positive at 4.04% by March 31, 2025. This indicates a period of poor equity returns followed by improvement in shareholder value over time.

Overall Observations

The data reflects an initial phase of declining profitability on both assets and equity, accompanied by a slight increase in financial leverage. Following mid-2023, both ROA and ROE move towards positive territory, signaling an improving financial performance and operational efficiency. The steady increase in financial leverage implies a cautious but consistent approach to financing, which may have supported the eventual profitability recovery. The correlation between increasing leverage and subsequent improvement in return metrics may suggest effective utilization of debt or capital structure optimization.

Net Profit Margin

The net profit margin demonstrated a worsening trend from March 2021 through December 2022, declining from -9.57% to a trough of -20.74% in December 2022. Following this low point, there was a consistent recovery in profitability, with the margin improving progressively to reach positive territory at 3.02% by March 2025. This indicates a turnaround in operational efficiency or cost management resulting in profitable outcomes.

Asset Turnover

From its initial available figure of 0.72 in March 2021, asset turnover fluctuated somewhat but generally showed gradual improvement over the analyzed period. There was a modest dip to 0.57 in September 2021, followed by recovery and stabilization around 0.8 from late 2022 onward. The steady asset turnover ratio near 0.8 suggests consistent efficiency in utilizing assets to generate revenue during the latter periods.

Financial Leverage

Financial leverage increased gradually from 1.3 in March 2021 to a peak of approximately 1.65 in the latter part of the period (2024 to early 2025). Minor fluctuations were observed, but the general trend was an incremental rise in leverage. This indicates a growing reliance on debt or other financial obligations relative to equity over time, which may impact risk exposure.

Return on Equity (ROE)

Return on equity mirrored the trend seen in net profit margin, starting with negative values near -10% in early 2021 and declining further to about -20.85% by mid-2023. Subsequently, ROE showed marked improvement, turning positive by early 2025 and reaching 4.04% by March 2025. This turnaround reflects enhanced profitability and effective equity utilization after a period of losses.

The financial data reveals several noteworthy trends over the observed periods.

EBIT Margin

The EBIT margin shows a consistent pattern of improvement from negative to positive values over time. Starting with a negative margin near -9.19% in late 2021, the margin deepened to as low as -21.18% by early 2023, indicating expanding operating losses during this interval. Subsequently, from this trough, the margin improved steadily and turned positive by early 2025, reaching 3.35%. This suggests a significant improvement in operational efficiency or profitability at the EBIT level over the most recent quarters.

Return on Equity (ROE)

The ROE mirrors the trend seen in the EBIT margin with negative returns initially, beginning around -10.03% at the end of 2021 and worsening to approximately -20.85% by mid-2023. Over the latter part of the timeline, ROE improved progressively, turning positive around the first quarter of 2025 with a value of 4.04%. This improvement reflects better overall returns to shareholders, aligned with improved profitability metrics.

Asset Turnover

Asset turnover exhibited relatively stable behavior throughout the periods, fluctuating mildly between 0.57 and 0.83. After a low point around 0.57 in late 2021, the ratio increased steadily to approximately 0.83 by early 2025. This gradual improvement indicates more efficient use of assets to generate revenues.

Financial Leverage

Financial leverage rose moderately from 1.3 at the start of the observation period to a peak around 1.65 in mid to late 2024, before slightly decreasing or stabilizing around 1.62 by early 2025. This suggests an incremental increase in reliance on debt or other leverage components during most of the period, followed by a slight deleveraging or stabilization.

Tax Burden and Interest Burden

Data on tax burden and interest burden are only available for the most recent quarters, showing tax burden ratios of 0.76 and 0.9, and interest burden stable at 1. This suggests minimal or no interest expenses affecting earnings, while the tax burden has increased towards 0.9, indicating higher effective tax rates or less tax shield impact in the latest periods.

In summary, the company experienced initial operating and equity returns losses that deepened through 2022 and early 2023 but showed a steady turnaround into profitability and positive return by 2025. Asset utilization improved steadily, and financial leverage increased slightly but remained relatively moderate. The improvement in EBIT margin and ROE indicate enhancing operational performance and returns to equity holders in recent periods.

The financial data reveals notable fluctuations in key performance indicators over the observed periods.

Net Profit Margin

The Net Profit Margin shows a generally declining trend from the first available data in March 31, 2021, where it starts negative and worsens, reaching its lowest point at -20.74% by December 31, 2021. Subsequently, the margin improves steadily, moving upward from -18.98% in March 31, 2022, through to positive territory by March 31, 2025, achieving 3.02%. This indicates an overall enhancement in profitability from losses towards generating profit over the analyzed timeframe.

Asset Turnover

Asset Turnover begins at 0.72 in March 31, 2021, and displays some variation throughout the quarters, dipping to 0.57 in September 30, 2021, but generally exhibiting an increasing trend afterward. By March 31, 2025, the ratio reaches 0.83, reflecting improved efficiency in utilizing assets to generate revenue over time, particularly notable in the periods following the initial dip.

Return on Assets (ROA)

Return on Assets shows a similar pattern to the Net Profit Margin, starting negative at -6.87% in March 31, 2021, deteriorating further to -14.09% around March 31, 2022, and then recovering progressively. From mid-2023 onwards, the ROA improves consistently, turning positive by March 31, 2025, reaching 2.5%. This upward trajectory suggests enhanced asset utilization to generate returns, aligned with the improvement in profitability measures.

In summary, the company demonstrates initial challenges with negative profitability and asset returns during early periods, followed by a phase of steady recovery in both profit margins and asset efficiency. The progressing positive trends towards the end of the timeline indicate successful operational improvements and better financial health moving forward.

Tax Burden

The tax burden ratio is only available for the last two periods, showing an increase from 0.76 to 0.9. This suggests the company retained a higher proportion of its pre-tax earnings after taxes in the most recent quarter.

Interest Burden

The interest burden ratio remains constant at 1 in the last two reported periods, indicating that the company had no interest expense impacting its earnings before taxes during this time.

EBIT Margin

The EBIT margin demonstrated a negative trend from March 2021 through the end of 2023, reaching its lowest point around March 2023 at -21.18%. From that point onward, there is consistent improvement with margins steadily increasing into positive territory by March 2025, peaking at 3.35%. This upward trajectory suggests effective operational improvements and cost management over time.

Asset Turnover

Asset turnover shows a fluctuating but generally improving pattern beginning from 0.72 in March 2022, dropping to a low of 0.57 in September 2022, and then recovering to stable values around 0.8 from December 2022 onwards, reaching 0.83 by March 2025. This indicates enhanced efficiency in using assets to generate revenue, stabilizing at a relatively higher level in recent quarters.

Return on Assets (ROA)

ROA followed a declining trend from March 2022 to early 2023, hitting a low of -14.09% in June 2023. Subsequently, it improved steadily, turning positive by the end of 2024 and reaching 2.5% by March 2025. The improvement aligns with the recovery in EBIT margin and asset turnover, signaling a strengthening overall profitability and asset efficiency.

The analysis of the financial ratios over the observed periods reveals a discernible pattern of progressive improvement in profitability margins for the company. Initially, the EBIT margin and net profit margin exhibited negative values with a worsening trend from March 31, 2021, through the end of 2022, reflecting operational challenges and declining profitability. Specifically, both margins reached their lowest points around March 31, 2023, indicating significant losses during this timeframe.

Following this trough, there is a clear upward trajectory in both EBIT and net profit margins starting in early 2023 and continuing through March 31, 2025. This improvement culminates in positive EBIT and net profit margins by the end of the period, signifying a successful turnaround in operational efficiency and overall profitability.

Regarding the tax burden and interest burden ratios, data are available only in the latter part of the observed periods. The tax burden ratio improves from 0.76 to 0.90, which may indicate a lower effective tax rate or increased profitability affecting the tax expense calculation. The interest burden ratio consistently remains at 1.00, implying that no significant interest expense is reducing earnings before tax during this time after data recording began.

EBIT Margin

Shows a declining trend during the initial periods, reaching a low of -21.18% around March 31, 2023, followed by a steady recovery leading to a positive margin of 3.35% by March 31, 2025.

Net Profit Margin

Mirrors the EBIT margin trend closely, with low points around -20.74% at March 31, 2023, improving to a positive 3.02% at the end of the timeframe.

Tax Burden

Available only towards the final periods, increasing from 0.76 to 0.90, suggesting more favorable tax impacts on profitability.

Interest Burden

Remains constant at 1.00 in the recorded periods, indicating no reduction in pre-tax earnings due to interest expenses.

Overall, the data indicate that the company faced significant profitability challenges initially but managed to implement effective strategies or experience favorable market conditions resulting in improved margins and net income by the end of the analysis period. The stabilization of interest expenses and a more advantageous tax burden further support the firm’s enhanced financial performance in recent quarters.