A Genuine Operating Record, Overshadowed by a $1 Billion Paper Gain on Aurora
Income from operations was $1,061 million, up 169% from $394 million a year ago - a seventh straight positive GAAP quarter and the largest yet. Adjusted EBITDA rose 55% year-over-year to $1,690 million, a tenth straight positive quarter. Nine-month free cash flow reached $5,189 million, up 100% from $2,594 million in the first nine months of 2023; standalone Q3 free cash flow was roughly $2,109 million (nine-month total less the $3,080 million already reported through H1 2024), another new single-quarter high.
Net income attributable to Uber was $2,612 million, up from $221 million a year ago - but this headline is dominated by a non-operating item: a roughly $1.0 billion unrealized gain on the Aurora self-driving stake, part of a combined $1,664 million unrealized gain on debt and equity securities that also included $322 million on Didi, $141 million on a newly-disclosed Delivery Hero stake, and $134 million on Grab. Strip out the equity-stake swing and net income would still have been roughly $1.0 billion for the quarter, driven by the genuine operating improvement - itself a strong result, just not the $2.6 billion headline. Revenue grew 20% to $11,188 million. Mobility Adjusted EBITDA grew 31% to $1,682 million and Delivery Adjusted EBITDA grew 52% to $628 million, both new highs; Freight's loss widened to $(19) million from $(13) million a year ago.
Separately, Uber raised $2.75 billion in new senior notes this quarter (a $1.5 billion 4.9% note due 2034 and a $1.25 billion 5.4% note due 2054), using part of the proceeds to fully repay its outstanding 2030 Refinanced Term Loans and partially redeem its 2027 Senior Notes. Long-term debt rose to $10,986 million from $9,459 million at year-end, and total assets grew to $47,117 million (+22% since year-end), partly reflecting Aurora's markup and the added cash from the notes offering.
The Prescription
The headline "$2.6 billion net income" needs immediate qualification: roughly $1.6 billion of it is an unrealized, non-cash gain on Uber's minority equity stakes, led by Aurora - a company whose own share price this site has previously flagged as the single largest source of quarter-to-quarter noise in Uber's GAAP results (a $1.1 billion loss in Q2 2022, a $985 million gain for FY2023, a $505 million loss in Q1 2024, now roughly a $1.0 billion gain). The more durable story is buried underneath: operating income of $1,061 million, up 169% year-over-year, is a genuinely strong result on its own, continuing an unbroken streak of GAAP operating profits that now spans seven consecutive quarters.
The newly-disclosed Delivery Hero stake is worth tracking going forward - this is the first appearance of that name in this site's coverage of Uber's equity holdings, alongside the now-familiar Aurora, Grab, Didi, and Joby positions.
Key Financial Metrics
Q3 2024 vs. Q3 2023 - consolidated, reported in USD
| Metric | Q3 2024 | Q3 2023 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $11,188M | $9,292M | ✅ +20% |
| Adjusted EBITDA» | $1,690M | $1,092M | ✅ +55%, tenth straight positive quarter |
| Income (Loss) from Operations | $1,061M | $394M | ✅ +169%, seventh straight positive quarter, new high |
| Net Income (Loss) attributable to Uber | $2,612M | $221M | ✅ dominated by a ~$1.0B unrealized Aurora gain |
| Free Cash Flow (nine months) | $5,189M | $2,594M | ✅ +100% |
Balance sheet: Dec 2023 vs. Sep 2024
| Balance sheet metric | Sep 2024 | Dec 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash and Cash Equivalents | $6,150M | $4,680M | ✅ +31% |
| Total Assets | $47,117M | $38,699M | ✅ +22% |
| Total Liabilities | $30,578M | $26,017M | up 18% |
| Long-term Debt, net of current | $10,986M | $9,459M | up 16%, on the new senior notes |
| Goodwill | $8,086M | $8,151M | roughly flat |
Long-term debt rose 16% on the September 2024 senior notes offering; cash rose 31% partly on the notes proceeds not yet fully deployed at quarter-end.
Uber's net income jumped to $2,612 million this quarter, but roughly $1.6 billion of that came from unrealized equity-stake gains - led by a $1.0 billion Aurora markup. The more durable number is operating income of $1,061 million, up 169% year-over-year, a seventh straight positive GAAP quarter.
Segment Results
Segment Adjusted EBITDA, Q3 2024 vs. Q3 2023
| Segment | Adj. EBITDA Q3 2024 | Adj. EBITDA Q3 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mobility | $1,682M | $1,287M | ✅ +31% |
| Delivery | $628M | $413M | ✅ +52% |
| Freight | $(19)M | $(13)M | ⚠️ wider loss |
Mobility and Delivery both set new quarterly highs. Freight's loss widened slightly, still negative for a seventh consecutive quarter this site has tracked.
Beyond the Usual
A New Name in the Equity-Stake Disclosures: Delivery Hero
This quarter's equity-stake gain breakdown includes a $141 million unrealized gain on a Delivery Hero investment - the first time this stake has appeared in this site's coverage of Uber's marketable equity holdings (previously tracked: Aurora, Grab, Didi, Joby). Delivery Hero is a German-listed global food-delivery company; the filing text reviewed here doesn't detail the origin of this stake, worth confirming in a future post.
$2.75 Billion Raised in New Senior Notes
Uber issued $1.5 billion of 4.9% senior notes due 2034 and $1.25 billion of 5.4% senior notes due 2054 in September 2024, using part of the proceeds to fully repay its 2030 Refinanced Term Loans (approximately $1.97 billion outstanding as of June 30, 2024) and partially redeem its 2027 Senior Notes. This is the largest single debt-raise this site has recorded for Uber, and pushed total long-term debt above $11 billion for the first time.
Stock Price Since Last Quarter
Uber's stock recovered modestly: from a June 28, 2024 close of $72.68, to $64.47 in July (a further dip), then a recovery to $73.13 in August and $75.16 at the September 30, 2024 close - a gain of roughly 3% for the quarter, a second straight quarterly gain after Q2's decline.
Target Valuation Range
Fairly-valued. Uber traded at an EV/Revenue multiple of roughly 4.4x against TTM revenue as of this quarter's close - roughly flat with Q2 2024's ~4.4x, as trailing revenue growth kept pace with the stock's modest gain.
With approximately 2,105,709,325 shares outstanding as of October 28, 2024 (per the 10-Q's cover page) and a September 30, 2024 close of $75.16, Uber's market capitalization was approximately $158.3 billion. Against total liabilities of $30.58 billion and cash and cash equivalents of $6.15 billion, enterprise value was roughly $182.7 billion - roughly flat with the ~$175.9 billion calculated in the 2024-06 post, as the stock's modest gain was offset somewhat by cash. Against TTM revenue of roughly $42.0 billion (FY2023's $37,281 million, less nine-month 2023 revenue of $27,345 million, plus this quarter's nine-month 2024 total of $32,019 million), that implies an EV/Revenue» of roughly 4.4x.
| Sep 2024 | Jun 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| TTM Revenue | $42.0B | $40.1B |
| Enterprise Value | $182.7B | $175.9B |
| EV/Revenue | 4.4x | 4.4x |
The operating story keeps improving steadily - seven straight positive GAAP operating quarters, a tenth straight positive Adjusted EBITDA quarter, and free cash flow up 100% year-over-year through nine months - even as the net-income headline has become a less reliable summary of quarter-to-quarter performance given the size of the equity-stake swings. This site continues to hold off on a full DCF; the multiple held roughly steady this quarter as revenue growth kept pace with the stock.
Uber Technologies, Inc.'s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, filed with the SEC in November 2024.