Uber is finally on the right road. That could be Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi’s motto today, as the ride-hailing and food-delivery conglomerate demonstrates that its cash-printing press is revving up. After producing a small amount of cash last year, Uber’s free cash flow more than doubled in the third quarter to $905 million, while for the year to date it has generated $2.6 billion. Wowee.
Sure, that’s not exactly a fat cash flow margin. So far this year, Uber has turned about a tenth of its revenue into free cash flow, while the equivalent number at DoorDash is 17%. But given that Uber burned around $23 billion in cash between its launch in 2009 and 2021, the recent financial performance counts as good news. It explains why Uber stock, which for most of its four-year time on the public market has traded below its IPO price of $45, is lately above water. On Tuesday, for instance, Uber shares rose 3.7% to just below $50, lifting the company’s market capitalization to around $102 billion.
