(Reuters) – Rivian Automotive Inc on Monday missed first-quarter production estimates as the electric-vehicle maker grappled with supply chain constraints.
Calling supply chain hurdles as Rivian’s “biggest constraint” in February, CEO R.J. Scaringe had flagged that the company did not have components to fully run its Normal, Illinois, plant across all lines and multiple shifts.
The Amazon-backed company had said it stopped its commercial production line for the majority of the first quarter of 2023 to introduce new technologies including lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery packs.
Rivian produced 9,395 vehicles at its Normal plant in the quarter ended March, compared with Visible Alpha’s consensus estimates of 10,030 vehicles. In the fourth quarter, it built 10,020 vehicles.
“The report likely indicates that RIVN has continued to burn through cash at an alarming rate and is nowhere near generating even a gross profit, much less a net profit,” said CFRA Research analyst Garrett Nelson, who downgraded the stock to “strong sell” from “sell”.
Rivian shares fell 2.3% to $15.13 in midday trade.
GRAPHIC – Rivian’s quarterly production slips in Q1
https://www.reuters.com/graphics/RIVIAN-PRODUCTION/lbvggjkkqvq/chart_eikon.jpg
The Irvine, California-based company, however, reiterated its annual production target of 50,000.
“We expect full-year production to be back-end weighted due to supply constraints…and the commercial line downtime we’re taking in Q1 2023,” finance chief Claire McDonough said on an earnings call in February.
The electric-vehicle maker has been losing money on every vehicle it builds, and narrowly missed its annual production target of 25,000 units last year.
Nelson said the sequential decline in production and deliveries reflect a “step in the wrong direction for an EV manufacturer considered an early-stage growth company”.
Rivian delivered 7,946 vehicles in the reported quarter, compared with estimates of 7,090 vehicles. It delivered 8,054 vehicles in the fourth quarter.
Electric-car maker Tesla on Sunday said it delivered 422,875 vehicles in the quarter ended March, up 4% from the previous quarter.
(Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Akash Sriram; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Shounak Dasgupta)
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