Lucid (NASDAQ: LCID) announced today that it produced 2,282 vehicles in Q3 2022, a more than three-times increase from what it reported from its sub-par Q2. Of the 2,282 cars it built, Lucid delivered 1,398.
Lucid built all 2,282 vehicles at the AMP-1 facility in Casa Grande, Arizona, marking a drastic improvement in production figures, which have evidently been a reflection of the difficulty the automaker felt internally. Struggling with ramping production as many EV startups have, Lucid is making a turnaround and is heading in the right direction, as its Q3 delivery and production figures are indicative of growth.
Lucid struggled in Q2, delivering only 679 vehicles in Q2 while simultaneously slashing production projections for the full year. Although Lucid had originally planned to build 20,000 units in 2022, the company has made several revisions to its plans as supply chain and logistics challenges disrupted its ability to perform consistent manufacturing.
The automaker’s 2022 production forecast was once again cut in August when Lucid said it would look to build between 6,000 and 7,000 vehicles in 2022.
“Our revised production guidance reflects the extraordinary supply chain and logistics challenges we encountered,” Peter Rawlinson, CEO and CTO, said. “We’ve identified the primary bottlenecks, and we are taking appropriate measures…We continue to see strong demand for our vehicles, with over 37,000 customer reservations, and I remain confident that we shall overcome these near-term challenges with a relentless tenacity and a steely determination.”
Lucid reaffirmed its production forecast for the year today. “These figures remain in line with the company’s expectations, and Lucid believes it is on track to deliver on its previously provided 6,000 to 7,000 vehicle production guidance for full year 2022,” Lucid wrote in a press release.
Lucid’s Q3 Performance is good and bad
“The good news is that its Q3 production was more than triple Q2 levels and we think the company is on track to hit its full-year production guidance of 6K-7K units (a range it previously lowered twice),” Garrett Nelson, VP of Research at ACRA said, while slashing its price target on the stock from $12 to $6 and maintaining a “Hold” rating. “The bad news is that we think its full-year deliveries will fall short of this range and it is still nowhere near producing at a scale, which will curb its cash burn rates.”
Nelson said Lucid’s production and delivery figures “does little to alleviate investor concerns regarding its balance sheet,” and recommends the company perform a capital raise sometime next year. “Given the decline in the shares, an equity raise would be highly dilutive to future profitability and a debt issuance would likely be much more expensive than it would have been a few quarters ago given recent rate increases.”
Lucid shares were up 1.78 percent at 12:35 P.M. on the East Coast, trading at $12.86. The stock is down over 44 percent on the year.
Disclosure: Joey Klender is not a Lucid Shareholder.
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Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is being called “the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen” by Yale School of Management Senior Associate Dean Jeff Sonnenfeld, who made the comments in a recent interview with CNBC.
Sonnenfeld’s comments echo those of many of the company’s skeptics, who argue that its price-to-earnings ratio is far too high when compared to other companies also in the tech industry. Tesla is often compared to companies like Apple, Nvidia, and Microsoft when these types of discussions come up.
Fundamentally, yes, Tesla does trade at a P/E level that is significantly above that of any comparable company.
However, it is worth mentioning that Tesla is not traded like a typical company, either.
Here’s what Sonnenfeld said regarding Tesla:
“This is the biggest meme stock we’ve ever seen. Even at its peak, Amazon was nowhere near this level. The PE on this, well above 200, is just crazy. When you’ve got stocks like Nvidia, the price-earnings ratio is around 25 or 30, and Apple is maybe 35 or 36, Microsoft around the same. I mean, this is way out of line to be at a 220 PE. It’s crazy, and they’ve, I think, put a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”
Many analysts have admitted in the past that they believe Tesla is an untraditional stock in the sense that many analysts trade it based on narrative and not fundamentals. Ryan Brinkman of J.P. Morgan once said:
“Tesla shares continue to strike us as having become completely divorced from the fundamentals.”
Dan Nathan, another notorious skeptic of Tesla shares, recently turned bullish on the stock because of “technicals and sentiment.” He said just last week:
“I think from a trading perspective, it looks very interesting.”
Nathan said Tesla shares show signs of strength moving forward, including holding its 200-day moving average and holding against current resistance levels.
Sonnenfeld’s synopsis of Tesla shares points out that there might be “a little too much emphasis on the magic wand of Musk.”
Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever
This could refer to different things: perhaps his recent $1 billion stock buy, which sent the stock skyrocketing, or the fact that many Tesla investors are fans and owners who do not buy and sell on numbers, but rather on news that Musk might report himself.
Tesla is trading around $423.76 at the time of publication, as of 3:25 p.m. on the East Coast.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk affirms Tesla commitment and grueling work schedule: “Daddy is very much home”
The remarks came as Tesla shares crossed the $400 mark on the stock market.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk reiterated his commitment to the electric vehicle maker and its future projects this week, responding to speculation following his $1 billion purchase of TSLA stock.
The remarks came as Tesla shares crossed the $400 mark on the stock market, extending a rally fueled in part by Musk’s TSLA purchase.
Elon Musk’s nonstop work schedule
Amidst the reaction of TSLA stock to Musk’s $1 billion investment, Tesla owners such as @greggertruck noted that “Daddy’s home.” Musk replied, stating that “Daddy is very much home.” He then shared details of a packed weekend of work, which was definitely grueling but completely within character for a “wartime CEO.”
Musk did note, however, that he had lunch with his kids during the weekend despite his extremely busy schedule.
“Daddy is very much home. Am burning the midnight oil with Optimus engineering on Friday night, then redeye overnight to Austin arriving 5am, wake up to have lunch with my kids and then spend all Saturday afternoon in deep technical reviews for the Tesla AI5 chip design.
“Fly to Colossus II on Monday to walk the whole datacenter floor, review transformers and power production (excellent progress), depart midnight. Then up to 12 hours of back-to-back meetings across all Tesla departments, but with a particular focus on AI/Autopilot, Optimus production plans, and vehicle production/delivery,” Musk wrote in his post.
Wartime CEO
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives described Musk as operating in “wartime CEO mode,” highlighting autonomous driving and AI as a trillion-dollar market opportunity for Tesla. Musk reiterated this point late last month as well, when he outlined the several projects he is juggling among his numerous companies. At the time, Musk stated that he was busy with Starship 10, Grok 5, and Tesla V14. This was despite his notable presence on X.
With Tesla Master Plan Part IV being partly released, the company is entering what could very well be its most ambitious stage to date. To usher in an era of sustainable abundance, Tesla would definitely require a “wartime CEO,” someone who could remain locked in and determined to push through any obstacles to ensure that the company achieves its goals.
Elon Musk
Tesla analyst says Musk stock buy should send this signal to investors
“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk purchased roughly $1 billion in Tesla shares on Friday, and analysts are now breaking down the move as the stock is headed upward.
One of them is William Blair analyst Jed Dorsheimer, who said in a new note to investors on Monday that Musk’s move should send a signal of confidence to stock buyers, especially considering the company’s numerous catalysts that currently exist.
Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever
Dorsheimer said in the note:
“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish. This purchase is Musk’s first buy since 2020. To us, this sends a strong signal of confidence in the most important part of Tesla’s future business, robotaxi.”
Musk putting an additional $1 billion back into the company in the form of more stock ownership is obviously a huge vote of confidence.
He knows more than anyone about the progress Tesla has made and is making on the Robotaxi platform, as well as the company’s ongoing efforts to solve vehicle autonomy. If he’s buying stock, it is more than likely a good sign.
Tesla has continued to expand its Robotaxi platform in a number of ways. The project has gotten bigger in terms of service area, vehicle fleet, and testing population. Tesla has also recently received a permit to test in Nevada, unlocking the potential to expand into a brand-new state for the company.
In the note, Dorsheimer also touched on Musk’s recent pay package, revealing that William Blair recently met with Tesla’s Board of Directors, who gave the firm some more color on the situation:
“We recently participated in a meeting with Tesla’s board of directors to discuss the details of Musk’s performance package. The board is confident of its position in the Delaware case and anticipates a verdict by end of year. It does not expect a similar situation to occur under new Texas jurisdiction. Musk has the board’s full support, and we expect he’ll get more than enough shareholder support for this to pass with flying colors.”
Tesla stock is up over 6 percent so far today, trading at $421.50 at the time of publication.
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