Teladoc (NYSE: TDOC) is defending the basic premise of its BetterHelp business model while presenting drooping third-quarter revenue figures.

But the company plans to continue to invest in its capabilities to stay afloat in a rapidly changing, competitive industry.

“We view 2025 as being an important repositioning year for the company as we execute against strategic initiatives aimed at strengthening the business,” Mala Murthy, Teladoc’s chief financial officer, said on the company’s Q3 earnings call Wednesday. “Actions we are taking to position the company for long-term success will require incremental investments as we build out various products and capabilities. These will help enhance our value proposition and more effectively support client objectives as we adapt to evolving market demand and pricing dynamics in the core virtual care business.”

Teladoc brought in $640.5 million in Q3 2024 revenue, a 3% decrease year over year.

Teladoc’s virtual mental health business, BetterHelp, suffered a more drastic revenue dip, decreasing by 10% year over year – to $256.8 million in Q3 2024.

While delivering news of yet another quarter of declined revenue, company executives touted Teladoc’s cash-flow position. Teladoc has over $1.2 billion in cash and cash equivalents, Murthy said, which will provide the company with optionality in the future.

Charles “Chuck” Divita III, Teladoc’s CEO as of June 2024, said the company was moving with urgency, a phrase he used in Q2’s earnings call.

“We will continue to evaluate all aspects of our business and move with urgency on opportunities to drive higher levels of performance and position the company for long-term success,” Divita said on Wednesday’s call. “Revenue, growth, profitability, cash flow, generation and maintaining a strong balance sheet are key priorities. As we make moves to advance our strategy, we are committed to business success and shareholder value creation.”

BetterHelp has historically been plagued by high customer acquisition costs, but these levels have stayed consistent in the third quarter, Murthy said, albeit at elevated levels. The average number of paying customers dropped 2% sequentially and was down 13% year over year, which Murthy attributed to fewer “growth users” added to the platform.

“We again made a deliberate decision to refrain from pursuing inefficient member-based growth,” Murthy said. “Importantly, average revenue per user churn rates and member retention have all been fairly stable over the course of 2024.”

Teladoc expects that customer acquisition costs will remain elevated in 2025.

Murthy also highlighted small improvements in paying user count stability, saying that the number of monthly paying users at the end of September was “modestly” above that at the end of June.

As of the third quarter of 2023, BetterHelp’s paying-user count was about 459,000, according to supplemental information shared by the company. That dipped to about 425,000 by the end of last year, to 407,000 by the end of 2024’s second quarter and to 398,000 by the end of Q3.

The company maintained the strategies it previously announced in Q2 2024: continuing international expansion, enhancing products and securing insurance coverage. Teladoc will also focus on its top and bottom lines, according to Murthy.

The move to accept insurance was a pivot for the company, which has historically charged out-of-pocket.

Teladoc is executing its plans to foster in-network insurance agreements. The company is conducting “exploratory” discussions with payers and other potential customers and is on track with its milestones, according to Divita.

The company, according to C-suite leaders, is taking a methodical, measured approach to early negotiations with payers and is developing capabilities internally to build insurance capabilities.

Divita specified, however, that his primary focus remains on improving direct-to-consumer results. The insurance pivot will better leverage Teladoc’s marketing spend, Murthy said.

When questioned about the company’s expenditures, which include over $27 million in technology and development investments in the first three quarters of 2024, Divita said Teladoc was aggressively “rationalizing that portfolio,” and will seek to further curtail spending there.

The company’s leadership vets investment decisions based on opportunities for both operating and revenue growth, Murthy said.

Ultimately, Divita believes his company is laying the groundwork for a stronger foundation moving forward. Part of that belief stems from the fact Divita has experienced Teladoc’s offerings from the other side, having previously joined the organization from GuideWell, the parent company of Florida Blue.