Whatâs Going On Here?WeWork announced earlier in the week that itâs finally hitting the stock market on Thursday, and the coworking giant is hoping its critics give it a kinder reception this time around. What Does This Mean?2019 was a simpler time â a time when WeWork, rather than a pandemic, was stealing all the headlines. The company, after all, went from planning its initial public offering at an eye-watering $47 billion valuation to a spectacular flameout after investors got nervous that it might never turn a profit. But what a difference two years makes: WeWorkâs dream is finally about to become reality, albeit this time via a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). In other words, itâs set to merge with a listed shell company thatâll fast-track its arrival onto the stock market. Nowhere near the same sort of moneyâs involved, mind you: the dealâs worth a relatively paltry $9 billion. Why Should I Care?The bigger picture: Is WeWork a good buy?
SoftBank has been trying to put investorsâ minds at ease ever since it bought a controlling stake in WeWork in 2019 â from bringing in a new CEO to cutting the companyâs dizzying costs. And while lockdowns have hurt WeWork in the last 18 months, the Japanese conglomerate is confident that demand for flexible workspaces will thrive in a world where people crave a more hybrid lifestyle. Letâs hope so: WeWork has notched up losses of $3 billion in the first half of this year, and itâs behind on its revenue target too.
Zooming out: The robots have arrived.
WeWork isnât the only SoftBank-backed company going public this week: warehouse automation company AutoStore listed on the stock market on Wednesday, and investors initially sent its shares up by 11% (tweet this). No surprises there: the Norwegian firm saw revenue surge 88% in the first six months of 2021 compared to the same time last year, as firms piled money into their booming ecommerce segments. | 