NEW YORK, Feb 4, 2026, 17:29 EST — After-hours
- Uber shares dropped roughly 5% in after-hours trading following a first-quarter profit forecast that came in below expectations
- Uber signaled a rise in its effective tax rate for 2026 and said it’s doubling down on autonomous vehicle deployments
- CFO Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah will step down, and Balaji Krishnamurthy is named as his successor
Shares of Uber Technologies, Inc. dropped roughly 5% to $73.92 in after-hours trading Wednesday, following a weaker profit forecast and news of a CFO transition. Earlier in the day, the stock swung between $70 and $80.40.
This move is significant because Uber has become a quick barometer for consumer spending on rides and food delivery, even as households cut back. It also challenges the market’s appetite for big wagers amid slimmer short-term margins.
Investors have long viewed Uber as a “durable demand” play. But on Wednesday, attention turned to the price of that demand — whether rising taxes and steeper fares leave room for profit.
Uber projected first-quarter adjusted EPS between 65 cents and 72 cents, falling short of the 76-cent consensus, Reuters reported. The fourth-quarter adjusted EPS also came in below forecasts at 71 cents versus an expected 79 cents. CFO Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah is stepping down, with veteran Balaji Krishnamurthy named as his successor. The company flagged a higher effective tax rate of 22% to 25% for 2026. Uber plans to roll out robotaxi services in as many as 15 cities worldwide by the end of 2026 and expand into Madrid, Hong Kong, Houston, and Zurich. Waabi’s first 25,000 passenger vehicles will run exclusively on Uber’s platform. “There will likely be a continued AV debate,” noted William Blair analyst Ralph Schackart. (Reuters)
Uber reported a 22% jump in trips to 3.8 billion in its latest quarter. Gross bookings—the combined value of rides, deliveries, and other services—also climbed 22%, reaching $54.1 billion. Revenue increased 20%, hitting $14.4 billion. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi described the results as “another record-breaking quarter,” while incoming CFO Krishnamurthy noted the company is “entering 2026 with strong momentum.” Looking ahead, Uber forecast first-quarter gross bookings between $52.0 billion and $53.5 billion, with adjusted EBITDA expected in the $2.37 billion to $2.47 billion range. (Uber Investor Relations)
Adjusted results exclude factors like swings in investment gains and losses, along with other one-offs, offering investors a clearer picture of Uber’s operating trends. This is crucial since revaluations of equity investments can cause fluctuations in reported profit.
The CFO transition complicates the picture for traders tracking Uber’s upcoming spending, particularly on autonomous vehicles. The company insists it can integrate self-driving cars into its platform to boost utilization, instead of operating fleets as separate services.
There’s a downside risk, though. Taxes might hit harder than anticipated, price cuts and shared-ride discounts could continue to weigh on take rates, and robotaxi deployments might stall due to regulatory hurdles, safety issues, or just limited supply.
Uber’s update will shape investor sentiment across the transport-and-delivery sector, where pricing and incentives shift fast. Whether Wednesday’s miss affects peers like Lyft in ride-hailing and DoorDash in delivery depends on if it’s seen as a company-specific issue or a wider industry pressure.
The next hurdle arrives Thursday, Feb. 5, during the regular session, when analysts roll out updated estimates and investors scrutinize Uber’s tax assumptions alongside the timing of its CFO transition.
