Stock markets have been volatile in 2023, and investors can expect them to remain so for the foreseeable future. There's so much uncertainty about the future course of the global economy that it could take a long time for the market to establish a firm direction. On Wednesday morning, major stock market indexes moved slightly higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI 0.85%) picking up just about 0.1% near the start of trading.

In recent years, the rise of the gig economy has provided many workers with an economic lifeline to survive tough times. Companies serving freelancers and other gig workers have gone through a lot over that period, seeing huge gains followed by steep declines. However, things are starting to look up for gig economy stocks, and that showed up in the financial results of website design specialist Wix.com (WIX 1.46%) and gig-work marketplace platform provider Fiverr International (FVRR 10.29%). Read on to get all the details.

Wix turns things around

Shares of Wix.com were up 13% early Wednesday. The website design specialist saw continued steady growth in its business, and more importantly, it made big strides toward sustained profitability.

Wix's fourth-quarter financial results were encouraging. Revenue climbed 6% year over year to $355 million, with an 8% rise in sales from the creative subscriptions segment. Annualized recurring revenue moved 7% higher to $1.08 billion. Wix also showed solid gains in bookings, suggesting future strength as well. Adjusted net income of $35.6 million reversed a loss in the year-earlier period and worked out to adjusted earnings of $0.61 per share.

Wix was particularly proud of its efforts to overcome difficult macroeconomic conditions over the course of 2022. Innovative features for creative professionals gained a lot of traction, and co-founder/CEO Avishai Abrahami sees even more new products coming out in the coming year. Even as the rush to the internet during the early years of the pandemic slows, Abrahami believes Wix has huge potential.

Wix expects to post positive adjusted net income in 2023, a full year earlier than it previously expected. Given the market's emphasis on profitability, it's easy to understand why investors are pleased with Wix's projections and recent performance.

Fiverr gives shareholders more than a fiver

Shares of Fiverr International were also up sharply early Wednesday, climbing 16%, or almost $6 above its closing price on Tuesday. The gig-work platform provider reported fourth-quarter financial results that told investors everything they wanted to hear.

Fiverr managed to eke out some growth for the period. Revenue of $83.1 million was up 4% year over year. Adjusted net income climbed to $10.7 million, or $0.26 per share, up from $0.22 per share in the fourth quarter of 2021.

Key business metrics for Fiverr were a bit mixed. Active buyers inched higher by just 1% to 4.3 million as of the end of December. However, those customers tended to spend more, with average spending per buyer up 8% year over year to $262. The percentage of sales that Fiverr kept for itself also kept improving, pushing higher by a full percentage point to 30.2%.

Fiverr believes that the first quarter of 2023 will be the toughest, and it's projecting sales to be flat to up 2%. However, later in the year, the company sees its comparisons getting easier, and that's why it sees sales of $350 million to $360 million for the full year. At a growth rate of 4% to 8%, that's far from what shareholders saw in Fiverr's heyday, but it does show continuing relevance as the gig-work marketplace keeps working to boost corporate efficiency and profits.