S&P Dow Jones Indices announced in December 2023 that Uber would enter the S&P 500 before the December 18 open. Uber replaced Sealed Air. Jabil and Builders FirstSource took the other two available places; Uber did not replace all three companies.
I doubted Uber’s path to durable profit for years, so the inclusion was worth noticing. The more useful question was whether its ride and delivery operations could keep generating cash after incentives, insurance, and other costs. An index committee decision does not answer that, although it reflects a company that had moved beyond its earlier loss-making profile.
Index funds that track the S&P 500 had to adjust their holdings. That can create trading around the change, but it is no guarantee of a lasting share-price gain. I would rather follow Uber’s reported operating results than buy the ceremony.
Uber later joined the S&P 100. Each inclusion marks scale. Neither replaces the work of checking the business.