Time To Catch An Uber Share?

Uber has always been an attractive stock for the savvy day trader. Whilst many long term holders pass it by due to its horrific unprofitability, and lack of any real moat, the volatility this brings can be a desirable prospect to those looking for a quick short (or long).

London License

After a three year battle against Transport for London, Uber ($UBER) has won its appeal in court. The result means the company has overturned the refusal to renew their operating licences in the national capital.

The original decision came over several safety concerns the governing body had over the company’s methods and standards – most prominently, the ability for unauthorised drivers to upload their photos to an already registered account and take rides.

Despite being granted a temporary licence until the courts heard their appeal, this regulation allowed other companies to sweep into London and try and scoop up some of the potential fallout should the appeal fail.

Several of these recently became part of the app FreeNow – run by BMW (€BMW) and Daimler (€DAI).

However, a judge has now ruled Uber is fit for purpose, meaning they have potentially free reign over London again for an indefinite amount of time.

Timing

Many may see this as an excellent sign to grab and hold some Uber stock or go Long with a CFD or other options trade.

While it’s likely the news will cause a quick spike for the SF car hire company, this may provide a much better opportunity for those looking to do a big short.

This ruling is good news for the company, but London is, after all, just one city. A big city but still only one city. Whilst the food delivery service UberEATS has stopped Uber completely capitulating during COVID, they have many competitors there, and they offer nothing unique except maybe McDonalds ($MCD)!

As COVID continues for longer than anyone had thought, and offices and nightclubs continue to stay empty, who is going to be catching an Uber? Or any other ride for that matter? It may not be immediately, but it’s likely Uber is about to do a significant drop-off, and this ruling presents a good chance to hail that short trip.

As always trade carefully, and don’t overexpose yourself to risk.