Electric-vehicle startup Rivian (RIVN) will report earnings late Wednesday, as key client Amazon (AMZN) rolls out more than 1,000 of its electric vans just in time for holiday deliveries. Rivian stock rose.
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The rollout follows a launch in July in which hundreds of EDVs were deployed in select cities. Amazon has ordered 100,000 electric delivery vans in total, which it expects to have in hand by 2030, the company said in a recent statement.
Rivian was the first company to launch an electric pickup truck with its R1T model in September 2021. Later that year, it unveiled its R1S sport utility vehicle.
The production ramp-up has been difficult, however. Supply-chain woes and inflation have jacked up the price of parts and labor. As a result, Rivian increased the prices of its vehicles in March 2022, which caused some buyers to cancel orders.
Still, it managed to produce 4,401 vehicles and delivered 4,467 EVs in Q2. At the time, it confirmed its goal of producing 25,000 EVs in 2022, halving its earlier projection.
Rivan’s backlog for its R1T pickup grew to around 98,000.
But there have been growing pains. Rivian stock plunged in October when the carmaker announced a recall of nearly all of its vehicles to fix a steering defect.
The company forges ahead with new partnerships, however. In September, Rivian and German automaker Mercedes-Benz signed a memorandum of understanding to make large electric vans for each of its brands.
“With production expected to meet 25,000 for the year, a key Mercedes partnership and Amazon a key partner, we believe Rivian has the potential to become one of the main leaders in the electric-vehicle industry over the next decade,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives told IBD. “However, given macroeconomic challenges, chip shortages and production skepticism, the Street has raised a few key questions looking into the company’s future.”
Ives is nevertheless optimistic that Rivian can continue to ramp up production amid still-strong demand.
Rivian Earnings
Estimates: FactSet analysts expect Rivian to cut losses vs. a year ago by 77% to $1.79. But that loss would top the prior quarter’s loss of $1.62 a share. Sales are seen hitting $550.3 million vs. $364 million last quarter.
Results: Check back Wednesday.
In October, Rivian announced it produced 7,363 electric vehicles at its Normal, Ill., plant and delivered 6,584 EVs during the third quarter ending Sept. 30, 2022.
Rivian Stock
Shares gained 2.3% to 32.03 on the stock market today. Rivian stock is in a consolidation with a $40.96 buy point, according to MarketSmith.
The stock is way off its all-time high near 180 in November 2021. Rivian stock has weak fundamentals, with an RS Rating of just 27 out of a best-possible 99.
Shares are trading just below their slumping 50-day line.
Rival EV startup Lucid (LCID), which reports earnings late Tuesday, fell 3.2%. EV leader Tesla (TSLA) slipped 2.8%.
Follow Adelia Cellini Linecker on Twitter @IBD_Adelia.
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Source: https://www.investors.com/news/rivian-stock-earnings-on-tap-as-key-client-amazon-rolls-out-more-electric-delivery-vans/?src=A00220&yptr=yahoo