Uber gives potential investors first glimpse at US IPO filing

NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) – Uber Technologies filed for an initial public offering (IPO), starting the clock on what’s expected to be the biggest US listing this year.

The US ride-hailing giant filed with an initial offering amount of US$1 billion (S$1.35 billion), typically a placeholder amount used to calculate fees that will change.

The San Francisco-based company applied to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker UBER, according to its filing Thursday (April 11) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Uber, which has previously made public some of its financial results, disclosed further details in its filing.

The company generated net income of US$997 million in 2018 on revenue of US$11.3 billion, though operating losses totalled US$3.03 billion.

That compares to a net loss of US$4.03 billion in 2017 on revenue of US$7.9 billion, the filing shows.

The long-awaited filing gives potential investors their first look at hundreds of pages of detailed information about Uber, which was founded in 2009 and has had a winding road to the public market.

Uber, which is seeking to raise about US$10 billion in its IPO, according to people familiar with the matter, plans to kick off a road show to market shares to potential investors this month and would begin trading publicly in May.

The offering is expected to be the largest US IPO this year and among the 10 largest of all time on US exchanges.

Uber’s global reach distinguishes it from rival Lyft, which operates in the US and Canada.

Uber has also been reaching beyond the ride-hailing business, pitching investors a broader business that includes food and freight delivery, scooters, electric bikes and even flying cars.

Still, the company is reliant on its core ride-sharing business for the vast majority of revenue. In the fourth quarter of 2018, Uber generated US$2.54 billion in adjusted net revenue, with US$2.31 billion of that coming from ridesharing. Only US$165 million in net revenue came from Uber Eats.

Uber’s filing follows rival Lyft’s US$2.34 billion IPO in March, which is the biggest US IPO so far this year.

Lyft increased the number of shares that were sold and priced them at US$72 per share – the top of an elevated range – then watched as they jumped 21 per cent at the opening bell.

Since then, the stock has fallen to US$61.01 per share, sinking its market value to US$17.4 billion.

Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group are leading the offering.

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