[blackwasp]

According to a media report, Uber has received proposals from Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs for an IPO next year. Both the banks have estimated the company to be worth up to US $120 billion in an IPO.

The Uber IPO is expected to be the largest on the New York Stock Exchange since China’s Alibaba Group made their debut in 2014. The Uber IPO could rival Facebook’s 2012 IPO valued at US $104 billion. However, unlike the social networking website, the ride hailing company is not profitable on a day-to-day basis.

The ride hailing company did declare a profit in Q1 2018, though most of it is attributed to pulling back from expansion plans in Russia, China and South East Asia. Uber reported a Q2 2018 loss of US $891 million, despite a 41 percent increase in bookings compared to a year ago.

Uber is also working on expanding its food delivery service UberEats and also rentals of electric bikes and scooters, along with bookings for freight shipments. The San Francisco based company has also considered selling its autonomous vehicles unit.

It has also been reported that Uber’s rival in USA - Lyft, is also planning to go public. It is currently valued at US $15 billion.



Source: NY Times

Link to the Team-BHP News

[arunphilip]

It's not just an IPO. They are also planning on paying their drivers (in the US) in part by way of stock. This is currently not allowed, as Uber states these drivers are "driver partners" not employees (thus saving on a variety of employee-related expenses), while US securities law states that stocks can only be given to investors or employees.

Uber (and Airbnb, another IPO candidate) are requesting the SEC for a change in this law.

Source: https://www.axios.com/uber-asks-sec-...f1ebd20d9.html

[GTO]

In sheer respect for the way that they changed the game, I would like to invest a small token amount in the Uber IPO. Heck, if & when Ola launches an IPO in India, I'd invest a token amount in them too. Again, out of respect in how it has defended its turf (India).

Will be very interesting to see how the market treats Uber. On the one hand, it's the dominant player. On the other, there are many challenges, including pricing / losses, disruption from self-driving tech and manufacturers getting into operating fleets directly.

[SmartCat]

Uber's business model is asset-light, meaning they don't have to spend their money on buying cars or trucks. They are basically a technology company. It's surprising that they manage to rack up such huge losses. I guess their diversification plans were sucking up all their capital - autonomous tech, entry into various geographies, Uber freight, Uber Eats etc.

But now, Uber says they will concentrate on North America, Middle East and India only. They exited China and Southeast Asia
https://www.recode.net/2018/3/26/171...-international

And they plan to hive off autonomous driving unit
http://fortune.com/2018/10/17/uber-s...g-car-spinoff/

Something fascinating about game-changing tech companies is that they are all monopolies. Eg: Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix & Google (FAANG stocks). Right now, competition from Lyft and Ola means they are forced to keep fares low. Once competition is eliminated (via attrition), it will be easier for Uber to raise prices.

So Uber can become profitable by:

- Getting out of different geographies
- Not spending too much capital on autonomous tech
- Outlasting their competition

[avingodb]

I am not sure how it affects their India plans but loss of motivation among drivers is a big deterrent on growth too. I usually chat with uber drivers and many have started saying that they have started looking for other career options again. This is what Uber was supposed to be for them a few years ago!

[alpha1]

I am very bullish on Uber right now.
It is the only global player in "taxi" space that is present in India.
Do we have any Lyft in India? No.
Do we have Ola - yes but is it really global?

India has vast expanses of roads. Highly disorganized traffic. High unreliable or slow to book conventional taxis (autos, kaali-peeli, Wings etc), relatively low income levels (= difficulty in purchasing cars).
HUUGE population (= consumers).

Another point to note is that technology companies are not really valued based on trailing quarters Revenue, Op Income, free cash flow, working capital etc. These metrics are for evaluating traditional businesses. Tech companies are valued on "possibilities" of what they can capture (in human fantasy) and monetize.

[libranof1987]

I just spoke with someone in the know of this industry and we discussed how grossly overvalued this is.

Uber had a market worth of around $70b in 2016, dropped to $40-50b in 2017 during the Travis Kalanick episode. So, $120b seems crazy high.

I'm actually rooting for Lyft a little more than Uber; I always enjoyed that service more than I did Uber for around a year that I used them in the US. Someone mentioned that Lyft pays more to the driver (rather, cuts less commission). But yes, not an apples to apples comparison considering Lyft is only in the US and a couple of cities in Canada vs Uber's presence across the world.

Challenges for both: regulation (them not just being a platform but a service provider) and competition (from conventional taxis).

But Uber has a lot going for itself considering the amount of investment and partnerships it is doing towards self-driving cars.

[Trust_In_Thrust]

I don't see these business lasting much .The reasons are the drivers are highly unsatisfied due to low fares that they get after the 30per deducted as Uber or Ola charges and general mystery in allowing rides via software algortihm .A basic calculation will show why a fare below 12Inr is unworthy for the driver to drive .On top of this Uber Ola wants 30percents which makes it Inr 16per km approx .I don't think many people seeking value will pay this amount on regular basis considering Uber is running after volumes .

A car costing 5lacs has a life of 1.5 to 2years with average 200kms daily running .And an expense of INR 5 per km with fuel CNG, Maintenance etc .So amount spent in 2years is 5lacs Plus 200kms x 365x2x5Inr = Inr 12,30,000 plus insurance and random accidental damages pushes it to nearly 13lacs Inr .

Now average fare which lands in hand of Ola Uber is around Inr 7 after 30per charge of Ola / Uber.So earning for 2years thinking he gets rides all the time is Inr 7 x 200kms/day x 365days x 2years = Inr 10,22,000 /.

I have driven for few days for Uber in my personal car and have first hand experience .And this was I guess in 2016 when rides were easy to come .

I fail to see how this business can run .

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by blackwasp

It has also been reported that Uber’s rival in USA - Lyft, is also planning to go public. It is currently valued at US $15 billion.

Oh, it's happening.

Ride-hailing company Lyft Inc beat bigger rival Uber Technologies UBER.UL in filing for an initial public offering that will test investor appetite for high-profile but loss-making technology companies.

The company, which was last valued at about $15 billion, did not specify the number of shares it was selling or the price range for the offering in a confidential filing with the SEC.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-l...-idUSKBN1O51AA

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by blackwasp

According to a media report, Uber has received proposals from Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs for an IPO next year.

Now, this is happening!

One day after Lyft submitted paperwork to the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering, Uber sent in its own confidential filing, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing "people familiar with the matter."

The move puts Uber and Lyft in a race to Wall Street, an indication that both companies expect investors to have an appetite for only one ride-hailing company. Analysts hadn't expected Uber to go public "until the middle of next year," Recode reported on Thursday.

The filings now put both Lyft and Uber on pace for a public offering in the first three months of 2019.

https://www.cnet.com/news/uber-files...urnal-reports/