Rivian stocks dwindle on slower production outlook

Shares of Rivian Automotive tumbled on Thursday’s extended trading after it forecasted a slower increase in vehicle production for 2022.

The American electric vehicle maker slashed 12.71% or 5.23 points to $35.93 per share. It trailed its drop of 6.35% or 2.79 points to $41.16 per share in regular trading.

Correspondingly, this downturn shed $4.71 billion on the company’s market capitalization.

Rivian said it anticipates producing 25,000 electric trucks and SUVs this year in its latest earnings call.

The estimated figure is just half of its vehicle production forecast last year as part of its IPO roadshow.

Currently, the startup grapples with supply chain constraints and internal production snags. It also noted the continued inflationary pressures across the globe.

Still, the company ramps up its manufacturing facility to minimize price increases to customers in the near term.

Moreover, the business expects to recognize negative gross margins throughout the year.

In line with this, analysts and investors were disappointed with the weaker production guidance.

Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe cited that they could produce more than 50,000 units this year without supply chain problems.

As of March 8, the firm reported that it had built 1,410 vehicles this year and 2,425 since production.

Eventually, Rivian noted that car reservations had reached about 83,000.00, beyond the 71,000 in December.

At present, Rivian and legacy automakers Ford Motor and General Motors face tough competition from market leader Tesla.

Altogether, the sector targets to deliver more electric vehicles in the near future.

Rivian delivers a big Q4 loss

Meanwhile, Rivian also posted a broader expense in the fiscal fourth quarter compared to the year-ago level.

Subsequently, its net loss significantly edged up to $2.46 billion from the previous $353.00 million.

Then, the company’s revenue came in at $54.00 million, well below investors’ expectations of $60.00 million.

Nevertheless, Rivian mentioned it exerted efforts to further expand its commercial relationship with Amazon.

Notably, the e-commerce giant owns a 20% stake in the startup and has ordered 100,000 vans. The automaker said it would produce a second Amazon vehicle this year, the EDV-500.

The firm remains financially sound, with $18.40 billion in cash on hand at the end of 2021. It projects capital expenditures to be about $8.00 billion by the end of next year.

However, its stock price has plummeted 59.93%, or 61.56 points lower year-to-date.

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