Benzinga - by Shanthi Rexaline, Benzinga Editor.
Electric vehicle stocks defied the broader market optimism and ended mostly lower in the week that ended on March 8, led by Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA). Rivian Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIVN) got a reprieve as investors cheered the introduction of new models by the Irvine, California-based company.
Here are the key events that happened in the EV space during the week:
Tesla Berlin Outage, Freebies And More: The week marked a tumultuous ride for Tesla as number crunchers and few analysts warned of a potential first-quarter deliveries miss. Fund manager Gary Black said he sees the 474,000-unit consensus delivery estimate for the first quarter going down.
The Future Fund managing partner also said the Street will likely lower its 2024 deliveries and earnings per share estimates over the next few weeks. The firm’s flagship Future Fund Active ETF (NYSE:FFND) exchange-traded fund significantly reduced its Tesla holding, with the stock now accounting for under 3% weighting of the portfolio, down from 5%+ at the start of the week.
Tesla also faced negative headlines this week as suspected arson outside the Giga Berlin factory snapped the power supply to the plant and halted production. Tesla’s European factory may have to remain closed at least until March 17, reports said. Black stated that the disruption might not decrease deliveries since Tesla maintains high Model Y inventories in Europe.
In a big quarter-end push, Tesla said it would offer customers who take delivery of a new car by March 31 the option to receive as much as 10,000 miles of free supercharging, with the offer applicable to Model Y, Model S and Model X EVs. If unused, the supercharging miles would expire in two years.
Rivian Unveils 3 New EVs: On Thursday, Rivian held a global launch event for its new and more affordable midsize electric SUV EV, the R2. The car has a starting price of $45,000. Along with the R2, CEO R.J. Scaringe announced the R3 EV, a midsize crossover, and the R3X, a performance variant of the R3 offering. The R2 and R3 will feature two battery sizes, with the larger pack achieving over 300 miles of range on a single charge and offering 0-60 mph acceleration in under three seconds for the quickest powertrain configuration, the company said.
Rivian has begun taking reservations for the R2 in the U.S. for $100, with deliveries expected to begin in the first half of 2026. Scaringe said in a post on X that the R2 received more than 68,000 reservations in less than 24 hours.
Overwhelmed by the wonderful response to our new vehicles: R2, R3 and R3X.In less than 24 hours, we've taken more than 68,000 R2 reservations. We are thrilled to see this vehicle resonate so strongly with our community! pic.twitter.com/tEIBhwlJQC
— RJ Scaringe (@RJScaringe) March 8, 2024
Ford’s EV Dilemma: Legacy automaker Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F), originally the frontrunner among ICE manufacturers in EV transition, is finding the journey challenging. As Blue Oval’s Mustang Mach-E sales stutter, the company is apparently pinning its hopes on hybrids to stay relevant in the EV market. Monthly sales results released this week showed Ford’s sales rising 10.5% in February, thanks to a strong uptake of family crossover SUVs, pickup trucks and hybrid vehicles.
Nio Gearing Up To Launch Model Y Rival: Chinese EV maker Nio, Inc. (NYSE:NIO) shed more details regarding its sub-brand on a fourth-quarter earnings call. CEO William Li said the company will launch its mass-market sub-brand Alps in the second quarter. The first vehicle under the brand will be launched in the third quarter, with deliveries beginning in the fourth quarter. The CEO also said costs will be roughly 10% lower than that of Model Y, giving the company better flexibility for product pricing.
The second model of the mass market brand will be a SUV model for large families, he said.
The Shanghai-based EV startup reported a rise in fourth-quarter revenue and a narrower-than-expected loss.
Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.
Lucid’s Price Target Halved At RBC: Citing muted opinion regarding auto sales and licensing revenue, RBC Capital Market analyst Tom Narayan reduced the price target for Lucid Group, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:LCID) stock from $6 to $3, even as he maintained a Sector Perform rating. He cut the per-share earnings contribution of licensing revenue from $4 to $2 due to tempered expectations regarding licensing penetration levels. The auto business’ contribution to earnings per share was also reduced from $1.42 to 93 cents.
The KraneShares Electric Vehicles and Future Mobility Index ETF (NYSE:KARS) ended Friday’s session down 0.80% at $22.28, according to Benzinga Pro data. For the week, the ETF fell 3.68%.
Read Next: Rivian’s Stock Grossly Undervalued? Fund Manager Predicts Tesla-Like Turnaround Following New Vehicle Line-Up Announcements
EV Stock Performances For Week:
| Performances (+/-) | |
| Tesla | -13.47% |
| Nio | +0.35% |
| XPeng, Inc. (NYSE:XPEV) | -4.32% |
| Li Auto, Inc. (NASDAQ:LI) | -16.54% |
| Fisker, Inc. (NYSE: FSR_ | -22.05% |
| Workhorse Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: WKHS) | -8.01% |
| Hyzon Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ:HYZN) | +2.81% |
| Canoo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GOEV) | -11.27% |
| Rivian | +12.60% |
| Lucid | -6.91% |
| Faraday Future Intelligent Electric, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIE) | -32.83% |
| Nikola Corp. (NASDAQ:NKLA) | -8.46% |
| VinFast Auto Ltd. (NASDAQ:VFS) | -9.33% |
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