What happened
Even the fastest-moving cars have to stop or back up once in a while. That's what happened to Uber Technologies (UBER 0.69%) stock on Thursday, one day after it reported investor-pleasing fourth-quarter results. The rideshare company subsequently saw its price skid to a 2.6% decline, a worse showing than the 0.9% slump of the S&P 500 index.
So what
Oftentimes stocks will see a bit of a pullback following the euphoria of an estimates-beating quarter. Recent investors buying in will often book a quick profit on the resulting bullishness, engendering a counter-reaction the following trading session.
That was part of the mid-week dynamic with Uber, which showed impressive growth in quite a few financial and operational metrics in the period. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi described it as Uber's "strongest quarter ever," and that was hardly an exaggeration.
Compounding the usual push-pull in the wake of earnings, investors still might not have full confidence in Uber's future as a business. While the company did well at the end of 2022, zooming out a bit its history shows a lot of red ink on the bottom line. At times, its net losses have been quite vertigo-inducing -- for example, the $8.5 billion-plus deficit it posted in 2019... the year before the coronavirus pandemic struck.
Now what
Another element likely giving investors pause to think is competition. Uber faces a determined peer in the well-capitalized Lyft, which essentially offers the same core service (although Uber has a bit of an edge with its considerable delivery operations). Not only that, but commuters are being offered a range of mobility options that don't center on rideshare services, such as pay-as-you-go electric scooter rentals.
