Big Firms Are Investing in Rented E-Scooters. Here's Why
The sudden advent of sharable electric scooters in the United States has gained the attention of both business houses and investors. Some of the prominent bigwigs in Wall Street have already invested in rented electric scooters startups.
Thus, retail investors interested in the booming sharable electric scooters market can focus on the big firms investing in them.
Demand for Single Transport Pushes Electric Scooter Services
This new way of transportation is basically thriving on consumer demand for single transport. The growing desire among commuters for light-weight vehicles to cover relatively short distances is a major factor boosting the widespread use of sharable electric scooters.
This mode of transportation not only reduces commuters’ physical footprint, but also is environmentally friendly. An added advantage of rented electric scooters is their cost-effectiveness. These only make it more lucrative for young Americans who are increasingly growing cautious of their budgets and the impact that their lifestyles are leaving on their surroundings.
Therefore, this new transportation mode has a potential among millennials, Gen Z and most importantly among the working class since it can easily lower reliance on private cars and public transport.
According to Deloitte, more than 50% of car trips taken across the United States in a year cover less than five miles. This makes it ideal for light-weight transport modes such as electric scooters to be profitable alternative options, opening up a vast market segment that could be worth $22 billion by 2024, per Global Market Insights.
Global Investment in Electric Scooter Startups
Undoubtedly, this potential has been noticed by big American firms such as Uber Technologies, Inc. UBER, Lyft, Inc. LYFT, Alphabet Inc. GOOGL and Ford Motor Company F. While Ford carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) the rest carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
In order to make the most in this ride-sharing economy, these companies are investing big into electric scooter startups like Bird and Lime that were founded in 2017. In fact, about $3.7 billion was invested globally in electric scooter and electric bike companies through Oct 23 last year.
Alphabet’s venture arm GV’s$335 million investment in Lime last year is not unknown. Google's parent company, which generated 83% of 2018 revenues from advertising, could use Lime’s data for its mapping systems. This would significantly boost the company’s advertising revenues with more personalized ads.
Car giant Ford paid a hefty $100 million for electric scooter company Spin last year, in a first among notable automakers to launch its own electric scooters. These investments and acquisitions in the electric scooter industry make these big firms more lucrative. While Ford carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) while the rest carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
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