Uber priced its initial public offering on Thursday at the low end of its targeted range for a valuation of 82.4 billion U.S. dollars, hoping its conservative approach will spare it the trading plunge suffered by rival Lyft.

It is an underwhelming result for the most anticipated IPO since Facebook's market debut seven years ago. Uber raised 8.1 billion dollars, pricing its IPO at 45 dollars per share, close to the bottom of the targeted 44-50 dollar range.

However, the IPO still represents a watershed moment for Uber, which has grown into the world's largest ride-hailing company since its start 10 years ago.

The year's biggest IPO comes against a backdrop of turbulent financial markets, fueled by the trade dispute between the United States and China, as well as the plunging share price of Lyft, which is down 23 percent from its IPO price in late March.

Uber's valuation in the IPO is almost a third less than its investment bankers predicted last year but still above its most recent valuation of 76 billion dollars in the private fundraising market.

The IPO was oversubscribed, but Uber settled for a lower price to avoid a repeat of Lyft's IPO in late March, which priced strongly then plunged in trade. Uber also wanted to accommodate big mutual funds, which unlike hedge funds put in orders for a lower price.

Like Lyft, Uber will face questions going forward over how and when it expects to become profitable after losing three billion dollars from operations in 2018.

"Ultimately, the success of Lyft's and Uber IPO's offerings will be judged based on post-IPO performance and how these companies can sustain their growth, while moving toward profitability and lowering their cash burn," said Alex Castelli, managing partner at advisory firm CohnReznick.

Despite Uber moderating its IPO expectations, some still consider the stock overpriced.

"Uber is basically Lyft 2.0. Good model, growing sales. But, yet again, here comes California math once more. It is still losing a ton of money," said Brian Hamilton, a tech entrepreneur and founder of data firm Sageworks. "If you buy, you are buying a bull market, not a company," he added.

In meetings with potential investors the past two weeks, Uber's chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi argued that Uber's future was not as a ride-hailing company, but as a wide technology platform shaping logistics and transportation.