Lyft initiated with an Overweight rating, $78 price target at Piper Jaffray

Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson initiated coverage of recent initial public offering Lyft with an Overweight rating and $78 price target. The stock closed yesterday up $2.58, or 4%, to $60.94. Lyft will be both a driver and beneficiary of the growth of ridesharing and autonomous technology over the next 10-plus years, Olson tells investors in a research note. The analyst recommends investors with a "long-term view, and patience" own the stock. Olson expects "solid" near-term top line results from Lyft. The company has been gaining market share in recent quarters, "but the path to significantly positive net income will be a multi-year journey," he writes. Olson has a "don't overthink it" thesis on Lyft. One of the most significant changes in the lives of humans over the next fifty years will be tied to transportation, and this change will built on a foundation of vehicle electrification, autonomous proliferation and multi-modal networks, according to the analyst. "In the coming decades, participants in the creation of solutions to alleviate these challenges will reap the benefits," says Olson.