Lucid Motors shares fell to a new all-time low as Stifel slashed its price target on the struggling electric vehicle maker, citing expectations that the Saudi-backed company will require additional capital over the next few years despite recent debt financing.
Stifel analyst Stephen Gengaro lowered the price target to $17 from $21 while maintaining a Hold rating, according to a research note published on Monday.
Based on the stock’s closing price of $14.20 last Friday, the new target implies 19.7% upside potential.
The downgrade came on the same day Stifel raised price targets on both Rivian and Tesla citing progress on both the robotaxi rollout and the full self driving (FSD) technology.
“We continue to be big believers in LCID’s technology, and view the Air and Gravity as excellent products,” Gengaro wrote.
“However, we expect additional capital to be required over the next few years, and we await additional progress updates on Gravity sales and the rollout of the midsize,” he added.
Revenue Miss and Production Cuts
Lucid‘s third-quarter revenue of $336.6 million “modestly trailed our forecast and the consensus” despite representing a record for the company, Gengaro noted.
The EV has reduced its 2025 production target to 18,000 units from previous guidance of 18,000 to 20,000 units, marking the second cut in three months.
In early August, Lucid trimmed its guidance from 20,000 to the 18,000-20,000 range.
Gengaro said the firm “expects additional capital to be required over the next few years, and we await additional progress updates on Gravity sales and the rollout of the midsize.”
Second Major Downgrade
Stifel’s reduction follows Benchmark’s decision last week to cut its Lucid price target by more than half following the electric vehicle maker’s $875 million convertible note offering.
Earlier in the week, Lucid priced 7% convertible senior notes due 2031 in a private placement, with an additional $100 million greenshoe option that initial purchasers can exercise within 13 days of issuance.
The debt offering was designed to refinance near-term maturities and provide additional working capital.
Stock Collapse and Investor Losses
Lucid shares have plummeted 32% over the past 30 days and nearly 56% year-to-date.
Uber’s investment in the EV maker has declined $131.5 million in value during the first six weeks of the fourth quarter alone.
Uber disclosed in a 13F-HR filing that it held 13,715,121 Lucid shares valued at $326.3 million as of September 30.
That position was worth just $194.8 million at Friday’s $14.20 closing price, representing a 40% decline in roughly six weeks. Uber invested $300 million in Lucid as part of a robotaxi partnership announced in July.
As of press time, the stock is trading 5.7% lower at $13.38.
Management Exodus Continues
Eric Bach, senior vice president of product and chief engineer, was dismissed last week, a person familiar with the matter told EV.
James Hawkins, vice president of engineering, also departed, TechCrunch reported, though Lucid did not announce his exit.
The departures bring the total to 14 C-suite or vice president exits in less than two years.
Previous high-profile departures included the chief financial officer, product chief and CEO Peter Rawlinson, who transitioned to a strategic advisor role. The management turmoil has raised questions about operational stability as Lucid attempts to scale production.
Saudi Plant Progress
Lucid provided a rare update Friday on its Saudi Arabia manufacturing facility.
Nick Twork, vice president of communications, said on social media platform X that all building structures are complete at the AMP-2 facility, the majority of floors are poured and equipment installation is underway.
The company is transforming the assembly operation into a full vehicle production site.
