Want An Autonomous Driving Pure-Play? Check Out Mobileye, Pacific Crest Says

In a report published Wednesday, Pacific Crest analyst Brad Erickson initiated coverage of

with a Sector Weight rating. In the report Pacific Crest noted, "Mobileye is the leader in monocular camera-based ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems) and is developing some of the foundational technology for autonomous driving. Along with a several-year first-mover advantage, the company is securing design wins starting in 2018 for this technology, with bullish investors expecting 40% to 50% of global vehicles to roll off the line with some kind of ADAS feature set in 2020." For Mobileye to boost its leverage with tier-1 supplier partners, the ADAS investments made by these tier-1 suppliers would have to fail. This is "not a great bet," Erickson said. The company has lost two partners in the past year -

and

- while others are working on their own in-house developments. While Mobileye has a significant technology lead in active safety and autonomous driving, the stock's valuation reflects "optimistic adoption scenarios for each with little discounting for future competitive risk." Checks indicate that pure ADAS adoption may be below what many estimate, while the auto supply chain "is fraught with structural challenges," Erickson wrote. This makes it unrealistic to assume "sustainable upside."