Give ride-hailing giant Uber (UBER) credit: it is deeply concerned about people feeling safe when using its services. To that end, it has brought out a new program that allows women passengers to specifically request women drivers when using Uber services. This strictly voluntary gender segregation tool is apparently giving investors pause, though, as shares were down modestly in Wednesday afternoon’s trading.
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The tool, on the surface, works simply enough. Women passengers are now allowed to specifically select women drivers when using Uber. Women drivers, meanwhile, can also specifically request to only drive women. Uber’s vice president of United States and Canada operations declared, “It’s about giving women more choice, more control, and more comfort when they ride and drive.”
Of course, Uber made it clear from the beginning that the preference was just that, a preference. The preference would not always be guaranteed. But Uber did say that it would “increase the chances women will be paired in the app.” Both Uber and its immediate counterpart Lyft (LYFT) have made similar moves in the past. While there has always been a certain concern about this sort of gender segregation—including reinforcement of unfortunate stereotypes like “men are always unsafe” as well as darker potential applications like demands for drivers based on religion or race—the idea that Uber might make some passengers more comfortable, and more amenable to using the service, is worthwhile.
The Canadian Teenager Problem
Further, there is another Uber safety measure coming to Canada, specifically to Victoria. So-called “teen accounts,” which got their start in Calgary back in 2022, are coming complete with some extra safety-related features like live tracking and audio recording during rides. Code verification systems are also involved; teens get a four-digit code, which they must give to the driver before the ride can begin.
The drivers on teen accounts will specifically be Uber drivers with excellent ratings and plenty of experience, making them perhaps the best choices for anyone to ride with. Meanwhile, parents get automatic notifications when a teen on the account requests a trip, and that comes with the aforementioned safety features as well. This makes a teen in an Uber about as safe as they can be, given the circumstances.
Is Uber a Buy or Sell Right Now?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on UBER stock based on 29 Buys and four Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 38.78% rally in its share price over the past year, the average UBER price target of $102.96 per share implies 13.12% upside potential.
