Katapult Provides Update on Fourth Quarter Performance – Gross Originations Grow Double-Digits Year-Over-Year

Rhea-AI Summary

Katapult Holdings (NASDAQ: KPLT) reported strong Q4 2024 performance with gross originations reaching $75.2 million, marking an 11.3% year-over-year increase and exceeding their previously projected 6-8% growth range. This represents their ninth consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth and second-highest originations volume historically.

Key highlights include a 50% year-over-year increase in total lease applications, with new customer applications up 51% and existing customer applications up 50%. Repeat customers accounted for 61.5% of Q4 2024 gross originations. The company's Katapult Pay® (KPay) service showed remarkable growth, with gross originations increasing 52% year-over-year.

Positive

• Gross originations increased 11.3% YoY to $75.2M, exceeding guidance
• Total lease application volume grew 50% YoY
• KPay gross originations increased 52% YoY
• Strong repeat customer rate at 61.5% of gross originations
• Ninth consecutive quarter of YoY gross originations growth

Negative

• None.

Insights

Financial Analyst

KPLT's Q4 performance reveals compelling operational momentum with 11.3% YoY growth in gross originations reaching $75.2 million, surpassing their guided 6-8% range. The 50% surge in application volume and strong 61.5% repeat customer rate demonstrate effective customer acquisition and retention strategies. KPay's 52% YoY growth indicates successful digital transformation efforts.

For a micro-cap fintech with $31.8M market capitalization, these metrics suggest potential operating leverage. However, critical assessment requires full financial results, particularly credit quality metrics and cash flow data. The high repeat customer rate could indicate either customer satisfaction or concerning dependency on lease financing. The growth in applications needs to be evaluated against approval rates and credit performance.

In simple terms: Think of Katapult as a digital rent-to-own service. They're getting more customers through the door (50% more applications) and existing customers keep coming back (61.5% of sales). Their new digital payment option (KPay) is growing fast, showing they're successfully modernizing their business.

Market Research Analyst

The strong Q4 performance indicates shifting consumer behavior in the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) and lease-to-own space. The 50% growth in both new and existing customer applications suggests increasing adoption of alternative financing options, particularly among credit-challenged consumers. This trend aligns with broader market observations of consumers seeking flexible payment solutions amid economic pressures.

The success of KPay with 52% YoY growth reflects the company's successful pivot toward digital-first solutions. The high repeat customer rate of 61.5% suggests strong product-market fit, though it may also indicate alternative financing options for their customer base. For context: Traditional BNPL players typically see repeat rates between 40-50%, making Katapult's numbers notably strong.

Gross Originations Increase 11.3%, Exceeding Company Outlook

PLANO, Texas, Jan. 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Katapult Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: KPLT), an e-commerce-focused financial technology company, today announced gross originations for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2024.

Katapult’s gross originations were approximately $75.2 million for the fourth quarter, an increase of 11.3% year-over-year and above the 6-8% growth range the company provided on November 6, 2024. This is expected to be the ninth consecutive quarter of year-over-year gross originations growth and the second highest level of gross originations volume in the company’s history.

Key drivers of the strong performance during the quarter include:

• Growth in application volume. Total lease application volume grew approximately 50% year-over-year; this includes approximately 51% growth in new customer lease application volume and 50% growth in existing customer lease application volume.
• Strong engagement from repeat customers. Approximately 61.5% of gross originations in the fourth quarter of 2024 came from repeat customers¹.
• Continued engagement with Katapult Pay® (“KPay”) and our app. KPay gross originations grew approximately 52% year-over-year.
  

“We had a great holiday season that included strong engagement with both new and existing customers, and as a result, we achieved 11.3% year-over-year gross originations growth for the fourth quarter, which exceeded the outlook we provided in November 2024,” said Orlando Zayas, CEO of Katapult. “Our goal, heading into the 2024 holiday season, was to leverage the power of the Katapult ecosystem to drive consumers to our platform and incremental sales to our merchant-partners. Thanks to the hard work of our team, we delivered on this goal and are well positioned heading into 2025. Since the launch of our app and KPay in late 2022, we believe we have transformed our go-to-market strategy and created a roadmap for continued growth in both our direct-to-merchant as well as our direct-to-consumer channels. We are excited about the future and look forward to discussing our final financial results in early March.”

¹Repeat customer rate is defined as the percentage of in-quarter originations from existing customers.

About Katapult
Katapult is a technology driven lease-to-own platform that integrates with omnichannel retailers and e-commerce platforms to power the purchasing of everyday durable goods for underserved U.S. non-prime consumers. Through our point-of-sale (POS) integrations and innovative mobile app featuring Katapult Pay™, consumers who may be unable to access traditional financing can shop a growing network of merchant partners. Our process is simple, fast, and transparent. We believe that seeing the good in people is good for business, humanizing the way underserved consumers get the things they need with payment solutions based on fairness and dignity.

For more information, visit www.katapult.com.

Contact:
Jennifer Kull
VP of Investor Relations
ir@katapult.com

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this Press Release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “design,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potentially,” “predict,” “should,” “will,” “would,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: the transformation of our go-to-market strategy and roadmap for future growth. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this Press Release, and on the current expectations of Katapult’s management and are not predictions of actual performance.

These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of Katapult. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including Katapult’s ability to refinance its indebtedness, the execution of Katapult’s business strategy, launching new product offerings and new brands and expanding information and technology capabilities; Katapult’s market opportunity and its ability to acquire new customers and retain existing customers; adoption and success of our mobile application featuring Katapult Pay; the timing and impact of our growth initiatives on our future financial performance and the impact of our new executive hires and brand strategy; anticipated occurrence and timing of prime lending tightening and impact on our results of operations; general economic conditions in the markets where Katapult operates, the cyclical nature of customer spending, and seasonal sales and spending patterns of customers; risks relating to others, levels of employment, disposable consumer income, inflation, prevailing interest rates, consumer debt and availability of credit, pandemics (such as COVID-19), consumer confidence in future economic conditions, political conditions, and consumer perceptions of personal well-being and security and willingness and ability of customers to pay for the goods they lease through Katapult when due; risks relating to uncertainty of Katapult’s estimates of market opportunity and forecasts of market growth; risks related to the concentration of a significant portion of our transaction volume with a single merchant partner, or type of merchant or industry; the effects of competition on Katapult’s future business; meet future liquidity requirements and complying with restrictive covenants related to our long-term indebtedness; the impact of unstable market and economic conditions such as rising inflation and interest rates; reliability of Katapult’s platform and effectiveness of its risk model; data security breaches or other information technology incidents or disruptions, including cyber-attacks, and the protection of confidential, proprietary, personal and other information, including personal data of customers; ability to attract and retain employees, executive officers or directors; effectively respond to general economic and business conditions; obtain additional capital, including equity or debt financing and servicing our indebtedness; enhance future operating and financial results; anticipate rapid technological changes, including generative artificial intelligence and other new technologies; comply with laws and regulations applicable to Katapult’s business, including laws and regulations related to rental purchase transactions; stay abreast of modified or new laws and regulations applying to Katapult’s business, including with respect to rental purchase transactions and privacy regulations; maintain and grow relationships with merchants and partners; respond to uncertainties associated with product and service developments and market acceptance; the impacts of new U.S. federal income tax laws; that Katapult has identified material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting which, if not remediated, could affect the reliability of its condensed consolidated financial statements; successfully defend litigation; litigation, regulatory matters, complaints, adverse publicity and/or misconduct by employees, vendors and/or service providers; and other events or factors, including those resulting from civil unrest, war, foreign invasions (including the conflict involving Russia and Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict), terrorism, public health crises and pandemics (such as COVID-19), or responses to such events and those factors discussed in greater detail in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in Katapult’s periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC) including Katapult’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024.”).

If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that Katapult does not presently know or that Katapult currently believes are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements in this Press Release. All forward-looking statements contained herein are based on information available to Katapult as of the date hereof, and Katapult does not assume any obligation to update these statements as a result of new information or future events, except as required by law.

FAQ

What was Katapult's (KPLT) gross originations growth in Q4 2024?

Katapult's gross originations grew 11.3% year-over-year to $75.2 million in Q4 2024, exceeding their projected 6-8% growth range.

How much did Katapult's (KPLT) lease application volume grow in Q4 2024?

Katapult's total lease application volume grew approximately 50% year-over-year, with new customer applications up 51% and existing customer applications up 50%.

What percentage of Katapult's (KPLT) Q4 2024 originations came from repeat customers?

Approximately 61.5% of Katapult's gross originations in Q4 2024 came from repeat customers.

How did Katapult Pay (KPLT) perform in Q4 2024?

Katapult Pay (KPay) showed strong performance with gross originations growing approximately 52% year-over-year in Q4 2024.

When will Katapult (KPLT) release its full Q4 2024 financial results?

Katapult plans to discuss its final financial results in early March 2025.