Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley are among approximately two dozen Wall Street banks that bankrolled the company’s stock market debut, and these institutions have been required by industry practice to wait until the 4th of June to takeoff analyst coverage.
The shares of Uber are down 9% from the price set in its May 9 IPO, which is the most anticipated IPO since Facebook’s IPO in 2012. At mid-day Monday, the stock was up 0.7%. Since the IPO, about $7 billion of the company’s stock market value has vanished, making it a major disappointment for the firm, it’s underwriters and shareholders.
According to Refinitiv data, three different analysts from the banks unassociated with Uber’s IPO recommend buying its stock while none recommend selling and 5 have neutral ratings. On average, these analysts expect the company to lose $4.4 billion this year, which is the equivalent of $3.49 per shares. Likewise, they expect the company revenue to go up 24% in 2019 to $14 billion.
Last Thursday after the firm reported a quarterly loss of $1 billion, James Cordwell, Atlantic Equities analyst upgraded his rating from neutral to overweight pointing in this research note to a progressively tender competitive environment in ride-hailing and more appealing stock valuation.
The San Francisco-based company was the biggest of a group of startups that have gone public in 2019 against the backdrop of a global stock market sell-off by the trade tensions between China and the United States. Uber also fights with its drivers over wages and faces increased regulation in several countries.
Uber and Lyft (a smaller rival) which is also losing money, are both trading at five times analysts expected 2019 sales. That implies investors value them similarly, even as several Uber devotees argue that this company deserves a premium due to its global supremacy in the ride-sharing industry and its investment in new businesses such as Uber Eats.
