EV makers Rivian and Lucid reported their third quarter earnings results. When the dust settled Rivian was reassuring shareholders while Lucid was celebrating with them.
Rivian CEO R.J. Scaringe acknowledged the impact a part shortage had on the company’s production and bottom line.
Both automakers reaffirmed earlier projections, which pleased investors. However, Rivian still fell short on its ledger, due in part, to a parts shortage. Rivian’s third-quarter revenue fell more than 30% year over year to $874 million, which was short of the $989.6 million that analysts on average estimated, according to data compiled by LSEG.
Much of that was related to the shortage of a metal part the company uses in each of its vehicle’s drive unit. The end result was a disruption of its production schedule, which forced the company to revise its full-year production forecast downward to between 47,000 and 49,000 vehicles from 57,000.
The upside is that the company still expects to deliver between 50,500 and 52,000 units to customers.
Rivian’s three-week line upgrade in April positioned the EV maker to be in the black later this year.
More good news
CEO R.J. Scaringe said the part shortage wouldn’t interrupt production in 2025. The company also noted it still expected to turn a gross profit in the fourth quarter of the year, despite the parts issue.
Rivian also announced a five-year supply deal for batteries with LG Energy Solution’s Arizona subsidiary for its smaller, cheaper R2 SUV. The agreement helps Rivian meet the domestic manufacturing requirements that are part of the Inflation Reduction Act, which provides incentives up to $7,500 for EV buyers.
“The recent transition to our second generation R1 vehicles has implemented multiple new technologies which will serve as the foundation for our midsize platform such as our zonal network architecture and Rivian Autonomous Platform, positioning R2 for a simplified launch,” the company said in a release.
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Beating the Street
Lucid surpassed Wall Street expectations for the quarter, reporting revenue of $200 million, which exceeded the estimate of $198 million, based on LSEG data. However, its net loss grew to $950 million.
Lucid surpassed Wall Street expectations for the quarter, reporting revenue of $200 million, which exceeded the estimate of $198 million.
The company also reaffirmed its production guidance for 2024, saying plans to build 9,000 vehicles. That calls for the automaker to build nearly 3,400 vehicles in the final quarter of the year without explaining how it plans to do so. Given its running totals during 2024, it’s an ambitious target.
It delivered 2,781 vehicles in the third quarter but reported a drop in production, manufacturing 1,805 vehicles. The company produced 2,110 vehicles during the second quarter of this year and 1,728 vehicles in Q1.
The total may include its second vehicle, an SUV dubbed Gravity, which it began accepting orders for Thursday as well. Officials said production of the ute will begin during the fourth quarter of this year.
The 2025 Lucid Gravity will be offered in multiple trim packages, with different seating and powertrain configurations.
Where are they
Although both companies offered positive news to offset continuing losses, the pair are in different points in their evolution.
Rivian is engaged in a concerted cost cutting effort. It’s been reworking contracts with its suppliers as it also makes changes to its manufacturing processes to save money.
Lucid’s already been through a massive effort to reduce costs and as a result it lost less money per vehicle in Q3 than it did in Q2. Conversely, Rivian saw its loss-per-vehicle expand during the same period.
However, between the cost cutting measures and simply selling five times as many vehicles as Lucid expects to for the full year, the company believes that will lead it into the black for the first time next quarter.
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