Lyft Inc. is heading toward its initial public offering possibly as soon as the end of March, according to multiple reports today.

The Wall Street Journal claimed that Lyft is preparing to list its shares on Nasdaq around the end of March, but Reuters said it’s planning to launch an IPO roadshow March 18, suggesting a possible later IPO date such as April or even May.

The IPO opening price is rumored to value Lyft between $20 billion and $25 billion, up from a valuation of $15.1 billion as of its last round of venture capital funding in June.

Whatever the date Lyft goes public, it is by all accounts attempting to beat rival Uber Technologies Inc.

“Lyft’s larger rival Uber Technologies Inc. still needs several more weeks for its IPO preparations, the sources said, putting it behind Lyft,” Reuters reported. “The two IPOs’ being far apart could allow Lyft to pitch investors without fretting about being overshadowed by Uber.”

Like its main rival in the U.S. market, Lyft has never made a profit and bleeds money, but it has seen increased use and market share. According to a report in December, Lyft’s market share rose to 28.4 percent in October, up 3 percent on the month, while Uber’s share dropped 3 percent, to 69.2 percent. Minor ride-hailing players such as Juno USA LP, Gett Inc. and Via Transportation Inc. accounted for the remaining 2.4 percent.

Both Lyft’s and Uber’s IPOs will be a test of whether equity markets will tolerate high-growth, high-spending startups that have never made a profit. Not a single ride-hailing company anywhere in the world has offered an IPO to date.

China’s Didi Chuxing Technology Co. may be considering an IPO later this year but was reported in September to be “way behind” Uber in its plans. Uber holds a 20 percent stake in the company.

Southeast Asia’s Grab Taxi Pte. Ltd., of which Uber owns a 27.5 percent stake following its exit from the market in March, is long been rumored to be heading toward an IPO as well, but Chief Executive Officer Anthony Tan ruled out a public offering this year earlier today.

Lyft going first will also allow the company to avoid being judged by Uber’s standards. Although Lyft loses money, it’s minor -eague baseball compared with Uber’s major league amount every quarter. In the fourth quarter, Uber reported a $768 million loss.

Photo: Pkg203/Wikimedia Commons