Slack scraps billings outlook; 50% jump in sales fails to impress investors

Slack Technologies Inc on Thursday withdrew its 2021 billing outlook and reported a 50% jump in quarterly sales that failed to surpass lofty investor expectations driven by a surge in demand for workplace messaging platforms as more companies shift to remote work.

Shares of the company, which had surged nearly 80% this year, dropped 16% in extended trading after Slack withdrew its forecast for billings citing uncertainty driven by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Social distancing protocols have led many companies to rapidly adopt remote work, expanding the market for apps that allow workers to stay in touch and boosting Wall Street