The Freelancer Ltd (ASX: FLN) share price is sitting marginally above a 52-week low of 44 cents this morning after the online jobs marketplace released its financial results for the quarter ending September 30, 2017.
For the period cash receipts were up 2 per cent to US$9.85 million, with the group delivering an operating cash loss of A$120,000 over the quarter. For the nine-month period ending September 30 2017, Freelancer has delivered positive operating cash flow of A$1.38 million.
It's the flat top line growth over 2017 that is leading investors to hit the sell button as the stock was priced for Freelancer to grow revenues far quicker based on the strong user growth it has been reporting.
The company's recently acquired Escrow.com payments business has also not performed to initial expectations, although the group today claimed that it had its second best quarter on record in absolute payment terms for non-China volume.
The group is leveraged to the growth of the digital economy as common services such as website design, digital marketing, and search engine optimisation (SEO) are experiencing increasing demand from businesses globally.
However, Freelancer faces plenty of competition from the likes of overseas rivals Upwork, Elance and Craigslist.
The group is in excellent financial health with $34 million in cash on hand, but it seems investors are avoiding the stock until it can deliver growth across its key financial metrics.
