Goldman Sachs says this global delivery platform’s shares are set to soar over 100%

Published Mon, Oct 2 20238:19 PM EDT

Amala Balakrishner @in/amala-balakrishner @_amalabk

Shares of German food delivery platform Delivery Hero are set to double over the next 12 months, according to analysts from Goldman Sachs. The U.S. investment bank has a price target of 54.60 euros ($163.07) on the stock – giving it potential upside of 101% from its closing price of 27.17 euros on Sept. 29. Goldman remains bullish on Delivery Hero even as investors remain concerned about its free cash flow trajectory. Its confidence stems from Delivery Hero's first-half results this year which, according to Goldman, showed its free cash flows can break even in the second half of the year on the back of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) improvements. DHER-FF YTD mountain Shares in Delivery Hero In a note from Oct. 1, Goldman's analysts led by Lisa Yang said they see the company as a "market leader" of sorts in the food delivery space and expect it to benefit from a "more competitive landscape." "Delivery Hero operates in more favorable markets [compared to its] peers in terms of macro and unit economics. 95% of its gross transaction value is generated in countries where the company has a leadership position," the analysts wrote. The food delivery platform says it operates in over 70 countries and has partnerships with more than 500,000 restaurants. In some regions, it runs its operations under local brands. For instance, it owns Foodpanda which operates in some parts of Asia, and Tabalat in the Middle East. Delivery Hero is engaged in ongoing negotiations on the potential sale of parts of its Foodpanda business in Southeast Asia, however, Goldman's team views this positively and believes that any such deal will highlight optionality around its assets. Delivery Hero's closest competitors include British player Deliveroo , Chinese platform Meituan and the U.S.' Uber Eats. Several food delivery platforms emerged during the height of the pandemic when countries around the world imposed social distancing restrictions. The easing of those restrictions, coupled with mounting food inflation, has pushed many players to exit from markets they do not dominate. "[The] focus has shifted to profitable growth," Goldman's Yang explained, adding that the "market will likely need to see growth and profitability improve for stocks in the space to deliver sustained outperformance." She expects Delivery Hero to register the largest improvements this year in terms of EBITDA as a percentage of gross transaction value. — CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.