Shares of dLocal (DLO) slipped in premarket trading Friday after the company reported first-quarter earnings that came in a penny shy of analyst expectations. But if you look past the headline miss, the numbers tell a story of a company that's still firing on all cylinders.

The Uruguay-based payments platform posted earnings of 14 cents per share, just below the 15 cents analysts were looking for. Revenue, however, came in at $335.9 million, topping the consensus estimate of $333.1 million. The top-line beat was driven by broad-based growth across e-commerce, ride-hailing, on-demand delivery, remittances, travel, and gaming — every single vertical expanded between the first quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2026.

The real headline is Total Payment Volume (TPV), which surged 73% year-over-year to $14.1 billion. That's the sixth consecutive quarter with TPV growth above 50%, a streak that shows dLocal's merchants are not just sticking around — they're processing more and more payments through the platform.

Gross profit hit a record $119 million, up 40% from a year earlier, helped by a recovery in Argentina and continued strength in Africa and Asia. Operating profit came in at $53 million, or $57 million when adjusted for a one-time tax item, representing 25% year-over-year growth. Operating cash flow before working capital changes rose 10% to $69.3 million, underscoring the company's underlying cash generation.

Localization Strategy Gains Momentum

dLocal's bet on local payment rails continues to pay off. The company highlighted growing adoption of payment methods like mada in Saudi Arabia, Verve in Nigeria, and Meeza in Egypt — all part of its strategy to embed itself deeply in emerging markets.

E-commerce remains dLocal's largest vertical, but ride-hailing is becoming a notable growth driver. The company now supports four of the five largest global ride-hailing players operating in emerging markets. Remittances also stayed among the fastest-growing categories.

Perhaps the most telling metric: net revenue retention stayed above 140% for the fourth consecutive quarter. That means existing merchants are not only staying but expanding into new markets and adopting more payment methods, driving revenue growth without needing to acquire new customers.

Management reaffirmed confidence in the fiscal 2026 outlook, even with near-term margin pressure from prior investment cycles. They expect operating leverage to improve in the second half of the year as those costs normalize.

dLocal Price Action

Shares of dLocal were down 5.98% at $11.90 in premarket trading Friday, according to market data.