Lucid Crash Continues
Electric vehicle maker Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ: LCID) showed again why it would not be one of the winners in the crowded EV segment. Its quarterly figures were awful. (These are America’s best and worst new cars.)
Lucid posted total sales of 1,404 of its sedans. It lost $764 million, compared to $555 million in the same quarter a year ago. Revenue moved to $151 million from $93 million a year ago. All the numbers disappointed investors. Lucid’s car sales were so poor that they might as well have been zero in the eyes of Wall Street.
Lucid says it will produce about 10,000 cars this year. Tesla made 480,000 in the most recent quarter. Every major car company globally will come to market with a line of EVs, most of which will launch in the next three years. Lucid will be overwhelmed. Among other problems, it only has one model line.
Lucid also cut car prices by as much as $14,200, a sign of slack demand. This follows a series of price cuts by Tesla to drive demand. According to Tesla’s earnings, and sales, it is working. It likely will start a long price war to increase sales and hurt margins. Lucid cannot afford that.
Get Our Free Investment Newsletter
Lucid’s CEO and CTO, Peter Rawlinson, dared to paint his picture as a good one: “We look forward to exciting new products in the second half of this year, including the planned start of production of the Lucid Air Sapphire and the Lucid Air Pure Rear Wheel Drive, plus the highly anticipated unveiling of our new SUV, Lucid Gravity, forthcoming in November.”
Lucid’s shares are down over 70% in the past two years. Tesla’s are 6% higher.
Large car companies already have gambled that EVs are the future. Their total investment to be part of this future is in the tens of billions of dollars. Not all companies will be winners, but they will flood the market nevertheless. And each has huge product development, dealer network and marketing. Most have iron-clad balance sheets.
No matter how one views it, there is no room for Lucid.
Sponsored: Find a Qualified Financial Advisor
Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
Source: Read Full Article