Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Shares of the electric vehicle maker Lucid Motors touched a new six-month low on Wednesday, trading at $2.33, close to the all-time low of $2.29 reached in April.
As the Saudi-backed company prepares for the mass production of its second model, the Lucid Gravity SUV, within the next eight weeks, its stock remains under pressure. This year, the company aims to produce more than 9,000 vehicles.
Since reaching a 2024 high of $4.43 in late August, Lucid shares have dropped nearly 40%, leaving them down 44% year-to-date.
The company’s market capitalization now stands at $5.5 billion, with 2.34 billion shares outstanding.
Despite recent setbacks, Lucid is pressing ahead with plans to broaden its portfolio. The EV maker is set to begin mass production of its Gravity SUV by early 2024, with orders for U.S. customers opening on November 7 — as announced earlier this week.
CEO Peter Rawlinson has emphasized multiple times that the new model will significantly increase Lucid’s addressable market, potentially expanding it sixfold by tapping into the high-end SUV segment.
However, initial production will be limited to the higher-priced Grand Touring variant, which starts at $94,900, while the entry-level Gravity Touring, anticipated to start at $79,900, is scheduled for production in about 12 months — “late 2025.”
While Lucid reported record deliveries of 2,781 units of its Air sedan in the third quarter, a pre-announcement of lower-than-expected revenue and the rising costs of production have raised concerns.
Based on the recently announced third-quarter preliminary results, Lucid expects its revenue to be between $199 million and $200 million, indicating that it faced a 14.8% drop in the average selling price of the Air sedan, which fell from $84,000 to $71,600.
The EV maker expects to report an operational loss between $765 million and $790 million, exceeding analysts’ average estimate of a $751.65 million loss, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Adding to investor worries, Lucid’s recent public offering of nearly 262.5 million shares has increased concerns about dilution and the company’s ability to sustain capital without impacting shareholder value.
Commenting on the capital raise, Lucid CEO said it “should have come as zero surprise to anyone” while adding that the new funds will secure the company’s financial runway until 2026.
In the last 12 months, the number of top executives departing the company led by Peter Rawlinson has risen to seven — as EV recently reported.
The departures, which began in October 2023, include two C-level executives, one senior vice president and four vice presidents.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
