Its second-quarter sales soared 123%, said the Berlin-based company, which counts the United States and several European countries as its main markets.

"The growth we've been seeing in the last months has been exceptional, as both new and existing customers have made HelloFresh their go-to choice for cooking at home," CEO Dominik Richter said in a statement.

On Monday after trading, the company raised its 2020 revenue growth outlook to 75-95% from 55-70% in constant currency terms.

HelloFresh shares opened up 7% before easing to trade about 3% higher around midday. They are up over 150% this year.

The company lets customers choose online recipes and delivers the pre-portioned ingredients to their doors.

Like rivals such as New York-based Blue Apron it has benefited from a surge in orders as more people take deliveries and cook at home due to lockdowns and concerns about a resurgence in coronavirus cases.

It reported a core profit of 153.6 million euros (138.2 million pounds) on revenue of 972 million euros for the second quarter, at the higher end of its own July estimates.

For 2020, HelloFresh now expects an adjusted earnings before interest tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin of 9-11%, up from a previous forecast of 8-10%.

It expects its third-quarter adjusted EBITDA margin to exceed 5%, Chief Financial Officer Christian Gaertner said on an earnings call.

By Linda Pasquini