Tesla is reportedly pushing back its big robotaxi event — to the apparent relief of Uber and Lyft investors. Uber stock and Lyft shares both jumped following a Bloomberg report that Tesla plans to push back a planned event detailing plans for a robotaxi service from August to October.
Uber stock rose more than 4% to 72.38 in afternoon trades on the stock market today. Lyft stock was also up more than 4% at 13.48.
Plans for a potential autonomous robotaxi service from Tesla have weighed on Uber and Lyft stock since April. That was when Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk said the company would reveal a "robotaxi" product at an event Aug. 8.
Uber stock gained 24% in the first three months of the year but is down about 5% since. Lyft shares gained 28% in the first quarter and are down 29% since.
Uber Stock: Why Investors Are Worried About Robotaxi
In a recent client note, Jefferies analyst John Colantuoni said Musk's April robotaxi announcement "prompted renewed optimism around the timeline to scaled commercialization, but brought uncertainty about the implications for ride-share players like Uber and Lyft to the forefront of investors' attention."
The fear, he added, is the Tesla or another well-funded autonomous vehicle operator could build its own ride-hailing app that cuts out Uber and Lyft.
But Colantuoni wrote that survey data and talks with industry experts indicate it will be more efficient for autonomous vehicle operators to partner with the ride-hailing apps. Other analysts have also been skeptical of the immediate risk for Uber. Morgan Stanley's Brian Nowak wrote in May that autonomous driving still faces several years of regulatory, technical and consumer adoption hurdles.
Still, the jump for Uber and Lyft following Bloomberg's report points to the ongoing concern about Tesla's plans. Tesla is pushing back the event so it can have more time to build vehicle prototypes, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing unnamed sources. Telsa stock tumbled following the report.
Meanwhile, Uber stock has formed a consolidation pattern with a potential buy point of 82.14, according to MarketSurge pattern recognition. The stock has gained 17.6% this year, roughly in line with the gains for the S&P 500.
