Dubai Taxi Company Revenue Surge to Over $150 Million in Q1-2024

Dubai Taxi Company (DTC), a leading provider of comprehensive mobility solutions in Dubai, has maintained its strong growth momentum into the first quarter of 2024, delivering stellar financial performance as it continued to execute on its strategy of fleet expansion and margin improvement.

The company’s revenue for Q1-2024 increased 16% y-o-y to $152.03 million, driven by revenue improvement across all its segments, DTC said in a disclosure with Dubai Financial Market on Tuesday.

The core taxi segment of DTC, which has exclusive pick-up rights at both Dubai Airports and benefits from an attractive tariff structure, achieved solid growth during the quarter, with revenue up 15% y-o-y, driven by increased trips and trip lengths as well as higher tariffs, which was also supported by the additional taxis added to the fleet.

DTC’s exclusivity agreements in high-volume areas of Dubai provide significant competitive advantage over other operators in the city. Its limousine segment also witnessed solid performance with revenue increasing 7% year on year and 17% quarter on quarter.  Its taxis and limousines completed 12 million trips during the quarter, an increase of 8% year on year, as it acquired 94 new taxi licenses at the latest RTA auction.

The bus segment revenue increased by 28% y-o-y to $10.07 million driven by the increase in fleet size and new service contracts. The delivery bikes segment delivered a standout performance, with revenue increasing more than four times y-o-y, as DTC capitalised on rapidly growing e-commerce penetration and surging demand for on-demand delivery services.

The company’s strong revenue performance resulted in a 40% year on year increase in EBITDA to $36.26 million, at an attractive margin of 30%, up 5 percentage points on the prior year. DTC continues to leverage its scale and market positioning to drive operational efficiencies and lead the industry in technology adoption.

The net profit in Q1 of 2024, which was impacted by the introduction of corporate tax as well as finance costs, was up 15% year on year to $29.4 million. Excluding the tax impact, net profit increased 26%. Free cash flow for the quarter was $33.41 million.

Healthy Balance Sheet

DTC maintained a healthy balance sheet during the quarter, with a highly attractive net debt to LTM-EBITDA ratio of 1.1x and a cash balance of $112.31 million, including Wakala deposits.

DTC’s CEO Mansoor Rahma Alfalasi said that the company maintained a strong momentum into the first quarter of 2024, delivering revenue growth of 15% year on year which drove a 40% increase in EBITDA, as it continued to execute on its growth strategy.

During the quarter, DTC announced doubling of its fleet of airport taxis and acquired 94 new taxi licenses at the latest RTA auction, further cementing its position as the largest taxi operator in Dubai, he said.

“We are committed to supporting Dubai’s mobility landscape as the emirate’s urban areas continue to expand by offering solutions that meet the diverse needs of Dubai’s residents and through adopting technologies that enable efficient operations and enhance utilisation,” he said.

“Looking ahead, we are confident in the steady growth of Dubai’s population underpinned by strong economic fundamentals and its status as a leading business and leisure destination. In addition to our plans to grow further in Dubai, we see attractive opportunities to expand and broaden our services in neighbouring Emirates,” he added.

Outlook

DTC has a positive outlook across all segments, enabled by Dubai’s strong economic outlook and a forecast resident population Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 2.8% between 2023 and 2040, as well as a tourist visits CAGR of 20.5% between 2023 and 2025.

Dubai also retained its top position on Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Awards for 2024 for the third consecutive year, becoming the first city to do so, and it continued to witness stellar growth in visitor numbers, welcoming 5.18 million international visitors in the first quarter of 2024, up 11% year on year.