Pushpay shares got a big boost after the company unexpectedly signalled Covid-19 was more of an opportunity than a threat. Photo / 123RF
Pushpay shares got a big boost after the company unexpectedly signalled Covid-19 was more of an opportunity than a threat. Photo / 123RF
COMMENT:
Pushpay may offer a port in a storm for fear-driven investors as it reaps the benefits of millions of church goers turning to live-streaming.
Shares in the online giving and engagement platform for the faith sector were trading around $3.35 on Friday, giving it a market value of about$920 million.
They had fallen to $2.36 earlier this year but got a big boost mid-March when Pushpay unexpectedly signalled Covid-19 was more of an opportunity than a threat.
Pushpay's software helps people to donate online, serving more than 7,905 customers, including mega-Churches like Los Angeles-based Mosaic Church, which has seven different sites on the Pacific Coast and a weekly attendance in excess of 5,000 people.
The US faith sector is estimated to take in around US$130 billion ($215.9b) in donations each year. According to Pushpay, it counts 55 of the 100 largest US churches as clients.
As scores of people hunker down in their homes while Covid-19 spreads across the globe, churches like Mosaic are moving online and Pushpay is seeing increased traffic to its platform as literally millions tune in to sermons, prayer circles, worship services and Bible studies.
"When God closes a Church door, He opens a browser window," one headline quipped.
Chief executive Bruce Gordon said Pushpay's platform saw a "significant increase in traffic for both giving and app experiences" two weekends ago.
"There's also been a significant month-over-month increase in new online donors and offline conversions," he said.
"Digital attendance has increased sharply in the past two weeks across the whole of the US with all its positive connotations for Pushpay."
Pushpay chief executive Bruce Gordon. Photo / Supplied
Elevation Church, another mega-Church that uses PushPay, took to the internet two Sundays ago and had viewers checking in from Sweden to South Carolina. Its YouTube channel alone has 1.46 million subscribers.
Craigs Investment Partners head of institutional research Stephen Ridgewell rates Pushpay a "buy."
"We're seeing digital adoption accelerate across many sectors of the economy as people and businesses adapt to the need to be socially distant and work from home, and we expect to see similar trends amongst churches," he said.
According to Ridgewell, Pushpay is a "digital enabler" for churches and he expects to see increased demand from two areas.
First, it enables churches to continue to engage with their congregation, such as through video sermons distributed via their app.
Pushpay, for example, has a raft of advice for churches on its website including "How to livestream without a budget," and "the church leaders' guide to coronavirus: how to continue ministry during a pandemic." There are also checklists on how to pivot the church to a digital strategy in times of crisis.
Second, the proportion of donations made to churches via Pushpay is likely to increase now that most church buildings have been closed making it hard to give via cash or cheque, said Ridgewell.
Even if total donations to churches fall in the near term as a result of the economic situation, the value processed via Pushpay will likely increase, he said.
Earlier this month, Pushpay struck a more positive tone, lifting guidance for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and fair value adjustments to a range of US$25m and US$27m, largely due to the impact of Covid-19.
It had previously tipped earnings to be between US$23m and US$25m.
Revenue climbed 30 per cent to US$57.4m in the six months through September, as Pushpay processed US$2.2b of transactions, up from US$1.5b a year earlier.
Monthly average revenue per customer was up 20 per cent at US$1,272.
And that number is expected to keep rising.
The collection plate may be gone but "that doesn't mean giving has to stop or even slow down," Pushpay said.
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"Giving with a tap from the comfort of your couch is far easier than writing a check or stopping at an ATM before the service. Once people start giving digitally, they may never go back," it added.
According to Pushpay, if anything the coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated how important it is for churches to prioritising digital giving.
"Too many congregations who have made the tough decision to put gatherings on hold are completely reliant upon Sunday-morning offerings," it said.
Ridgewell agrees.
"Churches which don't currently have a good digital giving solution are likely to have this at the top of their priority list going forward," he said.
The company had already been increasing its client numbers and last December announced it would add about 4,000 church customers to its books with the US$87.5m acquisition of Church Community Builder.
The deal added another string to Pushpay's bow with Church Community Builder's platform not only helping churches communicate with their congregations, but also manage the administrative side.
As Christians prepare to observe the upcoming Easter festival, there's a very good chance that Pushpay will lend a helping hand in doing the Lord's work.
