When a caller inquired if they should buy, sell, or “ride with” Uber Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:UBER) on September 11, Mad Money host Jim Cramer commented:
Okay so, when I wrote How to Make Money in Any Market, I went over the stocks of companies that had been really great successes from an IPO basis and then from you know what people were thinking were the so-called hot stocks. I included Uber. I am beginning to think that I might have been wrong in the book about Uber. I don’t want to say that. I needed to see better action, though. All the others have been such fabulous performers. I’m worried about Uber. There, I said it. I am. Why? Because it doesn’t have earnings momentum. Doesn’t have growth.
Platform Scale and Autonomous Integration
Uber Technologies, Inc. continues to support its long-term bull thesis beyond traditional ride-hailing through massive global network effects and strategic positioning in autonomous vehicle deployment. The company’s Monthly Active Platform Consumers expanded 16% year-over-year to reach 208 million, while total trips climbed 18% to 3.9 billion.
Rather than acting purely as a legacy transportation app, Uber is successfully evolving into the leading operator of hybrid mobility networks. By integrating partnerships with autonomous driving developers, such as its collaboration with Wayve and robotaxi integration efforts, the company is positioning its marketplace to capture the next generation of driverless transit without having to develop the full autonomous-driving technology stack itself.
Execution Risks and Macro Pressures
Despite record network engagement and expanding operating margins, Uber Technologies, Inc. faces distinct valuation and growth friction points that validate broader market caution. While adjusted earnings per share reached $0.81, beating consensus forecasts, total quarterly revenue landed slightly below analyst expectations amid short-term premarket volatility. Investor caution was driven partly by Uber’s third-quarter EPS guidance, which came in below consensus. The company also faces some consumer discretionary headwinds, driver supply cost dynamics in major urban markets, and intense competitive pressure in local commerce delivery. Maintaining multiple expansion requires proving that high gross booking volumes can consistently translate into durable, accelerated net earnings growth rather than incremental top-line deceleration.
Institutional Ownership and Market Sentiment
According to Insider Monkey’s database of over 1,000 elite hedge funds, 151 hedge funds held positions in Uber Technologies, Inc. during the second quarter, down slightly from 153 funds in the prior quarter. Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square was the most prominent hedge fund holder in Q2 with 34.3 million shares. Moreover, its second-largest shareholder among elite hedge funds, Fundsmith LLP, initiated a position in Q2 with 8.9 million shares. Meanwhile, short interest remains light, with the short percentage of float standing at 2.29%.
Cramer’s concerns about earnings momentum and growth are fair points worth watching. Even so, Uber Technologies, Inc.’s sheer network scale and early moves into autonomous vehicle fleets give it serious staying power. If management can keep tightening platform efficiencies and capitalizing on the future of transit, the long-term bull case remains very much alive.
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