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How Should Investors Approach UBER Stock Post Q4 Earnings Miss?

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Key Takeaways

  • UBER posted Q4 EPS of 71 cents, missing estimates, even as revenues rose 20% to $14.3 billion.
  • Mobility and Delivery units drove growth, with gross bookings up significantly year over year.
  • The stock fell on soft March-quarter EPS guidance amid high investments in affordable rides and AV push.

On Feb. 4, San Francisco, CA-based Uber Technologies (UBER - Free Report) reported lower-than-expected earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2025, causing its shares to lose value. Moreover, the earnings guidance for the current quarter was tepid. 

The question that naturally arises now is whether investors should take advantage of the dip and buy shares of the company, which provides ride-hailing, food delivery and freight (leasing vehicles to third parties) services through its Mobility, Delivery and Freight segments, respectively. Let us delve deeper to answer the question.

Highlights of UBER’s Q4 Earnings

Uber’s fourth-quarter 2025 earnings per share of 71 cents missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 79 cents and declined 77.8% year over year. The increase in more affordable rides and higher insurance costs hurt results.

Total revenues of $14.3 billion edged past the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $14.2 billion. The top line jumped 20.1% year over year on a reported basis and 19% on a constant currency basis.

With economic activities normalized in the post-pandemic scenario, people are traveling to work and other places as before. As a result, UBER’s Mobility business has been seeing buoyant demand, with segmental revenues increasing 19% year over year on a reported basis and 18% on a constant currency basis to $8.2 billion.

With customer traffic picking up, gross bookings from the unit were highly impressive, aiding the fourth-quarter results. Gross bookings from the Mobility segment in the December quarter increased 19% year over year on a constant-currency basis to $27.4 billion.

Uber’s Delivery business also performed well in the quarter, with segmental revenues growing 29% year over year on a constant-currency basis. Gross bookings from the Delivery segment in the fourth quarter rose 26% year over year on a constant-currency basis to $25.4 billion. Total gross bookings jumped 22% to $54.1 billion.

Uber saw an 18% increase in its monthly active platform consumers to 202 million users in the fourth quarter. The platform recorded 3.75 billion trips, marking an 22% year-over-year rise, driven by both ride-hailing and delivery services.

Despite the miss in the December quarter, the company has an impressive earnings surprise record. Uber’s earnings have outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the past four quarters. The average beat exceeds 100%.

Uber expects March quarter gross bookings in the $52-$53.5 billion range, representing 17-21% year over year growth on a constant currency basis.

UBER’s management stated on the conference call that 2025 was the fifth consecutive year of annual gross bookings growth of more than 20%. The company generated $8.7 billion in adjusted EBITDA, up 35% and $9.8 billion in free cash flow, up 42%, showcasing its financial bliss. 

Why Uber Stock Fell Post Q4 Release

Even though revenues topped expectations, the fourth-quarter earnings miss and the below-par EPS guidance for the March quarter resulted in the stock shedding value after the release.  UBER’s increased investments for developing cheaper and more affordable mobility offerings like Moto, a 2-wheeler product, to broaden its customer base, might have contributed to the subdued adjusted earnings per share guidance (65-72 cents) for the March quarter.

Moreover, Uber announced the appointment of a new chief financial officer, effective Feb. 16. Balaji Krishnamurthy will take over from Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah as the CFO. The appointment of Balaji as the CFO may imply that Uber will continue making high investments toward autonomous vehicles or AV-related partnerships rather than immediately focusing on margin expansion. This is because Balaji, currently serving as vice president of strategic finance & investor relations, is actively involved in Uber’s AV push.

The anticipation of Uber continuing to incur high costs, courtesy of its AV-related investments, may have kept investors wary, contributing to the downward stock movement.

UBER’s Overall Price Performance Is Unimpressive

The slip following the fourth-quarter earnings miss marks a continuation of Uber’s disappointing price performance over the past six months. Over the timeframe, Uber’s shares have declined in double digits, underperforming the Zacks Internet-Services industry and rival Lyft (LYFT - Free Report) .

6-Month Price Comparison

Zacks Investment ResearchImage Source: Zacks Investment Research

San Francisco-based Uber’s shares have dropped primarily on concerns regarding competition in the robotaxi and autonomous driving space. Last year, Alphabet’s (GOOGL - Free Report) Waymo revealed that it had crossed 450,000 weekly paid rides, almost double the 250,000, which was reported in April 2025. The increasing use of autonomous rides through Alphabet’s robotaxi unit is impacting Uber’s core business – ride-hailing.

Launched in 2009 as part of Google’s Self-Driving Car unit before being reorganized into an independent company under the Alphabet umbrella, Waymo has already started large-scale, fully driverless services in multiple U.S. cities. Its entire fleet runs without safety drivers.

Valuation Picture

From a valuation perspective, Uber’s shares are cheaper compared with its industry. Going by its price/earnings ratio, the company is trading at a forward earnings multiple of 20.37, below the industry average. The company has a Value Score of C. Shares of Lyft are cheaper, with a Value Score of A.

UBER’s P/E F12M Vs. Industry & LYFT

Zacks Investment ResearchImage Source: Zacks Investment Research

How to Play Uber Post-Q4 Earnings?

While Uber’s unfavorable price performance, high debt levels and currency-related challenges pose near-term risks, the outlook is far from bleak for this ride-hailing giant.

The company’s strategic diversification and shareholder-focused initiatives stand out as key positives. With a substantial market capitalization of $156.27 billion, Uber is well-equipped to weather economic turbulence. The company’s commitment to diversification — through acquisitions, geographic expansion and innovative product offerings — has helped mitigate risks and strengthen its market position.

Uber’s expansion into international markets underscores its focus on achieving global reach and reaping the benefits of geographical diversification. Moreover, the company’s disciplined investments have broadened its service portfolio and enhanced the competitive edge.

In the highly lucrative AV space, Uber is pursuing a partnership-driven strategy to capture opportunities. By collaborating with multiple technology leaders, Uber has avoided the heavy R&D expenses tied to in-house AV development while still advancing its automation goals.

Overall, Uber’s scale, strategic investments and diversification initiatives provide a solid foundation for sustained long-term growth. Holding onto this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock, despite the recent dip, appears to be a prudent choice currently, while prospective investors might consider waiting for a more favorable entry point.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here


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