U.S. ride-hailing firm Lyft plans to raise up to $1 billion in financing

(Reuters) - Ride-hailing company Lyft Inc, Uber Technologies Inc's [UBER.UL] biggest competitor in the United States, is looking to raise up to $1 billion in a Series F funding round, according to filing provided by VC experts.

The company is selling 37.3 million shares of preferred stock to investors for $26.79 per share, according to the filing dated Dec. 18.

If all of the Series F shares are issued, Lyft would have a post-money valuation of about $4.88 billion, Justin Byers of VC Experts told Reuters.

Bloomberg reported late on Sunday that Lyft's pre-money valuation would be about $4.5 billion, quoting Sven Weber, a financial filings expert.

Lyft was valued at $2.7 billion in its previous round of financing earlier this year, led by Japanese online retailer Rakuten Inc .

Lyft, which makes a smartphone app that allows passengers to summon a ride, currently operates in about 150 U.S. cities.

The company in October reached a $1 billion run rate in gross annual revenue, the company's co-founder told Reuters in November.

(Reporting by Heather Somerville in San Francisco and Kshitiz Goliya in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)