What Happened?
Shares of ride sharing and on-demand delivery platform Uber (NYSE: UBER) jumped 3.5% in the morning session after California's governor signed a new bill that grants ride-hailing drivers the right to unionize while also significantly cutting the company's insurance requirements in the state.
The new law allows over 800,000 drivers for companies like Uber to join a union and bargain for better wages and benefits, while still being classified as independent contractors. In exchange, the legislation included a measure that lowered insurance requirements for accidents involving underinsured drivers. This change was expected to provide a major financial benefit.
For instance, rival company Lyft's CEO said the new rates were expected to save that company $200 million and could help reduce fares. Uber had previously stated that nearly one-third of every ride fare in California went toward paying for state-mandated insurance, highlighting the importance of the cost reduction for the company's operations.
After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $99.86, up 3.4% from previous close.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
Uber’s shares are quite volatile and have had 15 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 14 days ago when the stock gained 3.3% on the news that the company announced a strategic partnership with Israeli drone company Flytrex to launch a drone-based delivery service.
This move marked Uber's return to aerial delivery. The agreement meant Uber Eats would pilot the service in certain U.S. markets before the end of 2025. Unlike a previously abandoned attempt, Uber now benefited from Flytrex's experience and existing FAA approval for its drones, which had already completed more than 200,000 suburban deliveries. The service promised faster drop-offs and less road congestion. In other news, Uber also prepared to launch luxury helicopter hops on the French Riviera through a partnership with Joby Aviation. This wave of positive developments helped push the company's shares past $100 for the first time since its public offering.
Uber is up 58.1% since the beginning of the year, and at $99.86 per share, has set a new 52-week high. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Uber’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $2,754.
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