Street View: Autonomous vehicle outlook remains central to Uber's narrative

** Uber UBER.N forecasts Q4 profit below estimates as drivers-shortage, costlier fuel and the Middle East conflict choked ride-hailing growth

** Median PT of 52 brokerages covering the stock is $100; average rating "buy" - LSEG data

AV AMBITIONS REMAIN CENTRAL

** Barclays ("overweight," PT: $100) says increased demand for travel and reduced gas prices would be a nice tailwind for the story, but the low market share in AV (autonomous vehicles) supply may remain an overhang

** Bernstein ("outperform," PT: $90) says UBER is likely rangebound, as attention remains on the opportunities and risks from AV rather than near-term financial performance

** BTIG ("buy," PT: $90) says, "we still believe in a fragmented landscape and the idea that Uber can offer better utilization for AV fleets, but we don't see anything sufficient to tilt the narrative in a more favorable direction yet"

** Jefferies ("buy," PT: $110) says, co's plans to scale driverless AV offerings in 2027 and 2028, particularly in the US, should alleviate competitive concerns