Rivian Automotive Inc (NASDAQ: RIVN), on Tuesday, reported weaker-than-expected sales for its fiscal fourth quarter. Shares are down nearly 10% in extended hours.
Rivian stock down on weak guidance
The EV company attributed weakness to manufacturing hiccups, including supply shortages – challenges it expects will persist in 2023 as well.
Rivian also said that it’s aiming to produce a less-than-expected 50,000 vehicles this year. Reacting to its earnings print on Yahoo Finance, D.A. Davidson analyst Michael Shlisky said:
They’re putting out a production number that’s not enough of a growth rate. To go from 10,000 units in 2022 to 12,500 a quarter isn’t a big leap. So, it might be bad news that I think will make the stock go down.
Shlisky currently has an “underperform” rating on the Rivian stock.
Rivian’s fourth-quarter financial highlights
- Lost $1.70 billion versus the year-ago $2.50 billion
- Per-share loss also narrowed from $4.83 to $1.87
- Revenue shot up from $54 million to $663 million
- Consensus was $1.96 loss on $724 million revenue
Rivian Automotive also noted a massive 44% annualised increase in its full-year loss to $663 million, as per its letter to shareholders. Shlisky added:
It seems like almost every number is a bit light across the board. They need to speed things up. [But] cash came in about $1.0 billion better than our estimate. That’s a positive. They’re working to get more components and better pricing.
Late last year, the electric vehicles manufacturer pulled the plug on its agreement with Mercedes-Benz (source). Year-to-date, Rivian stock is up only slightly at writing.