Rivian slips while older car manufacturers increase EV targets
January 6 (Reuters) – Rivian Automotive’s share (RIVN.O) fell briefly during the IPO on Thursday in a sale with other electric car manufacturers as the battle for market share intensifies and older companies increase their own production.
Rivian fell to as low as $ 75.1[ads1]3, during the November $ 78 listing for the first time. The stock reduced losses and was last down almost 6% to $ 84.72.
The competing electric car manufacturers Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), Lordstown Motor (RIDE.O) and Fisker (FSR.N) each fell around 2%, with high-flying growth stocks under pressure from expectations that the US Federal Reserve could increase interest sooner than previously thought. .
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“Rivian investors need to keep nearby expectations under control,” Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas warned in a note to clients. “Tesla has shown us the extremely difficult way to increase the production of electric cars. You can not get the reward without the pain.”
Jonas considers Rivian’s stock to be “overweight”.
Rivian’s shares have fallen around 17% since the start of Wednesday, when Amazon, one of Rivian’s largest investors, said it had merged with carmaker Stellantis NV (STLA.MI).
The two companies will develop cars and trucks with Amazon software and distribute electric vans made by Stellantis on Amazon’s delivery network. read more
US stocks in Stellantis rose 2.3% on Thursday and are now up 11% in 2022.
Rivian signed a contract in 2019 to build 100,000 electric vans for Amazon by 2025. But now the business for electric commercial vehicles, an important market for Rivian, is becoming more crowded.
The fall in Rivian’s shares suggests that investors assumed that Amazon would primarily rely on Rivian vans for its electric car fleet, and that investors believe the latest announcement now makes it less likely, said Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Rosner.
General Motors’ (GM.N) commercial utility vehicle, BrightDrop, has signed agreements with Walmart Inc (WMT.N) and FedEx Corp (FDX.N), while Ford Motor (FN) is expected to deliver its E-Transit cargo van to customers this year.
Meanwhile, General Motors (GM.N) unveiled its electric Chevrolet Silverado pickup on Tuesday, and Ford is increasing production of the F-150 Lightning. Both pickups would compete with the Rivian’s R1T at a time when it’s struggling to stick to delivery dates due to supply chip limitations.
Ford’s share has risen 17% so far this year and is now at its highest level since 2001. GM has risen 7% in 2022.
“(Rivian) investors are likely to be a little intimidated by the old industry making a comeback,” said Guidehouse Insights analyst Sam Abuelsamid.
Rivian, which lost $ 1.2 billion in the third quarter, is expected to deliver cars to customers this year. Production at the second plant in Georgia, where it has invested $ 5 billion, is likely to begin only by 2024.
“It’s still in a way untested in terms of the investability of it as a stock versus some of the other names like Tesla, and no doubt Ford,” said David Keller, marketing strategist at StockCharts.com.
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Reporting by Nivedita Balu and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Eva Mathews and Tiyashi Datta, and by Noel Randewich in Oakland, California; Edited by Ramakrishnan M., Arun Koyyur and Nick Zieminski
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