Lyft maps route to place where all is relative 8 Mar 2019 What’s the ride-hailing app worth on the stock market: Is it $15 billion, its private value mid-last year, or $25 billion? And will larger Uber top $100 billion? All the players are still private, so there’s nothing to compare. They’d better hope Lyft does a good marketing job.
Lyft IPO has fewer Wall Street seats than it seems 6 Mar 2019 The ride-hailing firm has booked a staggering 29 banks for its trip to the public market. But only three, led by JPMorgan, will earn a decent fare. That’s an unusually small group. If Uber sticks with recent practice, there will be more wannabe drivers clamoring for their share.
Lyft and Uber could leave other IPOs idling 5 Mar 2019 The two ride-hailing firms could between them raise twice as much as the $7.1 bln tech debutants managed on U.S. exchanges last year. With Airbnb, Pinterest and others hoping to take similar trips to the public markets, Wall Street needs to get a lot more demand on the roads.
Lyft IPO promises roads to everywhere 1 Mar 2019 The firm is growing fast in a huge market, and there’s a glimmer of a path to profit. But Lyft is also hemorrhaging cash, faces frightful competition and is dependent on robo-cars arriving soon. Wall Street is along for the ride, but public investors will need strong stomachs.
Storms won’t keep Qantas from higher flight path 21 Feb 2019 Australia's flag carrier said fuel costs pulled first-half earnings down by nearly a fifth to $559 mln. Domestic business proved resilient, though; its fleet and balance sheet are in good shape too. Choppy weather lies ahead, but Qantas looks sturdier than higher-valued rivals.
Boeing can afford a business upgrade 8 Feb 2019 The $225 bln aerospace firm is considering whether to build a new jet. It stumbled with the 787 a decade ago. Since then, boss Dennis Muilenburg has fixed production snags, and customers are in better shape. A new wide-body could boost Boeing’s lead over Airbus.
Tesla CFO exit news is flashback to bad old days 31 Jan 2019 The electric-car maker’s new board chair and directors may be helping to tone down CEO Elon Musk’s overwrought promises and tweets. But his decision to wait until the end of an earnings call to disclose that Tesla’s finance chief is leaving shows Musk remains firmly at the wheel.
Harley’s tariff woes are more sidecar than engine 29 Jan 2019 The $6 bln motorcycle maker clashed with Donald Trump over trade barriers. But its big problem is generational. With Hog-riding baby boomers aging fast and the appeal of big internal-combustion engines on the wane, Harley needs products that will spark millennials’ interest.
Royal Mail decline will make Westminster nervous 29 Jan 2019 The postal service’s latest warning sent its shares well below its 2013 IPO price. Royal Mail is yet to cut its dividend and has minimal debt, but its main earnings generator is in decline. The risk of a lose-lose scenario involving some kind of UK state support has increased.
The end of gasoline-powered cars is nigh. Soonish. 28 Jan 2019 Sales of electric vehicles doubled last year while the overall market stagnated. China and California led the charge. The internal combustion engine still dominates, but demographics, governance and economics suggest that dynamic is not far from breaking hard.
EU can afford to shunt Siemens-Alstom to a siding 18 Jan 2019 Margrethe Vestager may well block the rail groups’ merger. That would rile German and French politicians yearning for a European champion to face down distant fears of Chinese dominance. But if the antitrust tsar pulls the plug, neither Siemens nor Alstom would suffer too much.
Shutdown tests U.S. companies’ stress filters 16 Jan 2019 Delta Air Lines says it loses $25 mln of revenue every month the government stays closed. Big deal. Like the market plunge that hit bank earnings, the shutdown has high visibility but little lasting impact. There are bigger risks to valuations that are harder to visualize.
Swiss $4 bln freight battle has questionable cargo 16 Jan 2019 Activist investor Cevian has helped solicit a bid for subscale freight group Panalpina. Would-be owner DSV could face competition from Switzerland’s Kuehne + Nagel, handing shareholders a sweeter price. It’s less clear that either will make a return from a much higher offer.
Lyft, Uber IPOs will drain Tesla’s scarcity value 3 Jan 2019 Electric vehicles check boxes for sustainability-minded investors. But the ride-hailing firms’ ubiquity and self-driving ambitions will give U.S. public shareholders new options beyond Elon Musk’s carmaker. Lyft’s growth and ESG credentials could make it the most desirable ride.
German takeaway truce delivers tasty value treat 21 Dec 2018 Delivery Hero is selling its German business to rival Takeaway.com for 930 mln euros. As with Uber's capitulation to Didi in China's car-share wars, it means an end to cutthroat competition in another gig-economy market - and relief for both companies' investors.
Shared bike wipeout indicts China’s startup model 20 Dec 2018 Ofo is struggling to refund millions of rider deposits, media report. The $2 bln firm, led by a young, stubborn founder, rushed for market share regardless of cost, enabled by indulgent backers like Alibaba. China's wasteful tech spending may be overdue a big bankruptcy.
East Africa will buck global great rift trend 20 Dec 2018 Twenty-five years after genocide, Rwanda’s economy is motoring sufficiently to need new markets. The potential inclusion of Ethiopia would make East Africa a single market of 250 million people. If it prospers, it would provide a useful counterpoint to global balkanisation.
Uber and Lyft race to get through open IPO window 10 Dec 2018 The ride-hailing apps are jockeying for pole position with public offering filings. Economic worries have put the broad market in a correction and Moderna’s plunge after a $7.6 bln IPO shows demand for cash-burning firms is limited. This duel risks a nasty collision with reality.
Royal Mail’s last valuation crutch looks shaky 15 Nov 2018 The UK postal firm’s shares fell after it reported a 25 pct drop in operating profit. Rising costs, falling letter volumes and the need to invest will make it hard for the group to cover its generous dividend. A lower payout would give investors little reason to own the stock.
Exclusive: FedEx drops NRA deal by snail-mail 30 Oct 2018 The shipping giant is ending discounts for the U.S. gun-lobby group’s members, eight months after other firms ditched similar schemes. FedEx says it’s an economic decision, not a response to mass shootings. Even so, it suggests offending the NRA is no longer bad for business.