On What Exchange Can I Buy Uber Stock?

We don't know which exchange Uber stock will trade on, but that doesn't mean you can't prepare for the Uber IPO...

According to Uber's new CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, the company is focusing on becoming profitable before going public.

He said the Uber IPO may not happen until 2019 and could be as late as 2021, so anxious investors still have to wait to get their hands on Uber stock.

Uber stock

But the good news is the new CEO is giving us a much clearer plan for the Uber IPO. Uber's former CEO, Travis Kalanick, told Business Insider in 2016 that Uber may not go public until 2026.

And since we now know Uber's IPO plans are more definitive, we want our readers to be prepared for the IPO, including the best way to profit...

Potential Roadblocks Before a Successful Uber IPO

Uber has dealt with almost too many scandals to count in 2017. Not only did the scandals lead CEO and founder Travis Kalanick to step down, but it has potential investors concerned if the stock will be worth owning.

Throughout this year, the company faced allegations ranging from sexual harassment to Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOGL) alleging Uber stole its technology. Uber was also accused of subverting regulators with a program called "Greyball."

And just this past month, a brand new Uber scandal broke. According to a Sept. 8 New York Times report, Uber is now under investigation by the FBI for using software to monitor the actions of Lyft drivers to potentially subvert its business. The program, called "Hell," targeted drivers who worked for both services and then gave financial incentives to those drivers to ditch Uber's competitor.

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Who Is Dara Khosrowshahi?

Throughout 2017, Uber also lost top management, including its senior VP of engineering, VP of product & growth, president, and CEO.

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With all of these issues, Khosrowshahi has a lot of issues to fix before the IPO.

But if he can change Uber's culture, our readers have been asking us if it's a good idea to buy Uber stock when it becomes available.

Here's the safest way to profit from Uber...

You Don't Have to Wait for Uber Stock to Trade to Profit

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According to Investopedia, San Francisco is the second-most expensive city in the United States, with the average home costing $820,000 inside the city. That also means retail space comes at a premium.

That creates a backdoor strategy for making money from the ride-hailing app without owning a single share of Uber stock. This strategy involves a lot less risk, because you'll avoid the volatile price swings that accompany public offerings.

For example, shares of Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) opened to the public at $24 per share on March 2. Today, shares of SNAP opened at $14.68 per share, a 38.83% loss since March 2.

Through extensive research, we found a real estate investment trust (REIT) that leases space to Uber.

In 2013, Uber signed a lease with Hudson Pacific Properties Inc. (NYSE: HPP) for an 88,134-square-foot space in San Francisco. The ride-hailing app grew so fast that it leased another 130,434 square feet at the San Francisco location in 2014, according to BizJournals.com.

Uber is also locked into that lease until 2024, which means seven more years of revenue from just one business. According to FactSet, Uber accounts for 3.2% of Hudson Pacific's revenue.

And that solid revenue stream has analysts bullish on HPP stock...

Of the analysts who cover HPP, 73% recommend it as a "Buy" or "Overweight." And on May 4, brokerage firm D.A. Davidson & Co. placed a "Buy" rating on HPP with a one-year price target of $43.00.

From today's opening price of $32.18 per share, that's a potential profit of 33.62%. On top of that, HPP also pays its shareholders a dividend of $0.25, which is a yield of 3.08%.

The Bottom Line:  Money Morning readers interested in buying Uber stock will have to wait several more years. But they can begin profiting right now. The safer play is to own shares of HPP. Not only is the HPP stock price expected to climb by 33.62%, but the company also pays its shareholders a dividend of $0.25, which is a yield of 3.08%.

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