Investor's Corner
Rivian gets $2.5 billion in funds in first investment round of 2020
Electric car maker Rivian has closed a $2.5 billion investment round led by fund manager T. Rowe Price.
The company’s most recent investments came from numerous participants, including Soros Fund Management LLC, Coatue, Fidelity Management and Research Company, and Baron Capital Group, who holds over $1.5 billion in TSLA stock.
Joe Fath, portfolio manager of T. Rowe Price Growth Stock Fund, said, “We are excited to continue this journey with Rivian’s innovative and talented team as they now prepare to deliver their groundbreaking products that help shift to a carbon-neutral planet.”
Rivian is currently developing its R1T pickup truck for the first production run, which is set to begin in early 2021 at its production facility in Normal, Illinois. The electric automaker is also in the process of developing its other launch product, the R1S Sport Utility Vehicle, for a production run next year.
Rivian Founder and CEO RJ Scaringe has been working with the company’s team of engineers to create a series of electric vehicles that are capable of handling rough, rocky, and unusual outdoor terrain while remaining sustainable and giving drivers high performance. However, Scaringe, while doing plenty of work behind the scenes, is appreciative of the investors who believe in Rivian’s mission to deliver sustainable and fun vehicles to the world’s adventurous people.
“We are grateful for the strong investor support that helps enable us to focus on execution of our products,” Scaringe said in a statement.
In 2019, Rivian closed several big investment deals with some of the largest companies in the world. In February, Amazon invested a $700 million investment into the electric automaker. The e-commerce giant also requested Rivian’s services to develop an electric delivery van that would reduce the carbon footprint left by combustion engine delivery vehicles. Rivian will provide Amazon with 100,000 of these sustainable delivery vans starting in 2021.
In December, Rivian closed another investment round with a total of $1.3 billion in secured funds. Ford participated in this round, adding to a $500 million investment that it gave Rivian in April.
Rivian’s R1T recently underwent intense off-road and speed performance testing at an Arizona proving grounds in late June. The tests allowed Rivian to assess the R1T’s durability when scaling unfavorable conditions for any vehicle. The truck handled the scenarios with relative ease while utilizing its versatile air suspension system, climbing up high-grade hills covered in large rocks.
The R1T will come in three different variants, all sporting different battery packs. Available in 105, 135, and 180 kWh, the R1T’s three configurations will offer all drivers precisely what they desire in terms of speed, performance, and towing capabilities. The truck starts at $69,000 for its 105 kWh variant and is set to begin production in 2021. Rivian will also start production of R1S and the Amazon delivery vans next year.
“We are focused on the launch of our R1T, R1S, and Amazon delivery vehicles. With all three launches occurring in 2021, our teams are working hard to ensure our vehicles, supply chain, and production systems are ready for a robust production ramp up,” Scaringe said.
Lucid CEO Silvio Napoli responded to rumors of an imminent bankruptcy that was reportedly being mulled after a report stated the automaker was working with the firm AlixPartners to iron out its next steps.
The company felt a massive loss on Wall Street yesterday, as the report essentially pushed the stock down as much as 55 percent on Tuesday.
The report, published initially by Eletric-Vehicles.com, claimed Lucid was essentially in dire straits and was told by AlixPartners, a commonly used restructuring advisor, to either take shares private or file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Lucid’s head of Communications, Nick Twork, immediately challenged the report and stated the company “has sufficient liquidity to carry its operations well into next year.”
Now, the company’s CEO is chiming in as well, stating that the report is “so far from the facts that they require a direct response.”
Napoli said:
“Lucid is not considering bankruptcy or a transaction to take the company private. Those reports are false. The Board did not explore either scenario. Period.
As disclosed in our most recent quarterly filing, Lucid has sufficient liquidity to fund its operations well into next year.
We work with outside advisors to improve operational performance and execution. They are not advising Lucid on a take-private transaction or bankruptcy, and any suggestion that they have recommended either course of action to management or the Board is false.
My priority is clear: turn this company around. That is where the leadership team and I are focused.
I look forward to providing a full update during our quarterly earnings call on August 4th.”
🚨 Lucid CEO Silvio Napoli calls rumors of financial issues “so far from the facts that they require a direct response.”
Read his full remarks here: https://t.co/t3Pg1NHvzy pic.twitter.com/LvHUPhO4Qf
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 15, 2026
It seems pretty clear that Lucid is confident things will be okay, and, to be honest, they should not have much to worry about, especially considering the company has been backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) for years. It has solid financial backing, and its sales, while weak, are pretty much right on par with a company of this age.
Lucid also sent a Cease & Desist letter to the publication for their report.
Lucid shares have rebounded nicely and are up nearly 21 percent at the time of publication. As soon as the company dispelled the rumors of bankruptcy yesterday, the stock began to climb back toward more reasonable levels.
Electric vehicle maker Lucid Group has denied rumors of an imminent bankruptcy after a report from this morning sent the stock on a dramatic drop on Wall Street, seeing losses of more than 40 percent during trading hours.
Lucid’s Director of Communications, Nick Twork, responded to the report from Eletric-Vehicles.com, which stated the company’s restructuring advisor, AlixPartners, was asked to review two decisions: taking Lucid shares private or filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The report also claims AlixPartners told the Lucid board to “concentrate on Gravity production while improving its quality, and to temporarily hold back the Lucid Air, the sedan that has defined the company since its launch.”
Twork said:
$LCID The rumors are completely false. The company has sufficient liquidity to carry its operations well into next year, as recently published in its last quarterly filings, and it has not formed any special Board committee to explore the scenarios reported today. Our focus is…
— Nick Twork (@ntwork) July 14, 2026
Shares rebounded after the response to the report, halving its losses as the trading day neared 3 p.m. Eastern.
Lucid has struggled to get its sales off the ground and into more respectable numbers, but the company is in its early years, when things are hard to begin with. It is also backed by several notable investors, including the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which has nearly limitless money and likely would not ditch an investment of this size so soon.
Lucid shares were down just 14 percent at the time of publication, a far cry from the 55 percent its losses topped out at during the day.
Tesla received a price target upgrade just on the heels of what was a crazy successful quarter for its automotive business, as the company reported a delivery beat of over 15 percent for Q2.
Jefferies analysts are upping Tesla’s price target (NASDAQ: TSLA) to $400 from $375, while maintaining their “Hold” rating on shares, and the strong automotive deliveries from Q2 is a big reason. However, there are some other catalysts that Jefferies believes position Tesla for a strong position in the second half of the year.
Strong Deliveries
Tesla reported 480,000 deliveries for Q2, while Wall Street was between 395,000 and 405,000, as an overall consensus. It was an incredibly strong quarter from a delivery perspective, and Tesla sold well more than it produced during the three months.
Tesla crushes Wall Street expectations, beats delivery estimates by over 15 percent
While vehicle deliveries are not necessarily looked at in the light that they used to be, Tesla still maintains a lot of advantages for keeping deliveries strong. With the loss of the $7,500 EV Tax Credit last year, Tesla still maintains a strong demand case for its EVs.
Robotaxi Performance
Tesla has been operating Robotaxi for over a year now, as it launched in Austin in mid-2025. That program has expanded to Houston and Dallas, the San Francisco Bay Area, and, most recently, Miami, Florida, the suite’s first appearance in the Sunshine State.
While the Robotaxi suite is still in its early phases and Tesla is working through things like fleet size and wait times, the company has been able to undercut the pricing of its competitors and has a great safety record.
Merger Speculation with Tesla and SpaceX
This is perhaps the biggest topic that many are speaking about with Tesla and SpaceX, and it is the one thing that seems to be on the mind of every investor.
Jefferies warns that growing talk of a Tesla-SpaceX merger could cause Tesla stock to trade more like a SpaceX proxy, which may disconnect it from underlying automotive fundamentals. SpaceX has a lot going for it, especially its compute deals that have been widely publicized as of late.
Profitability in New Projects Could Take Some Time
Tesla has a few long-term ventures in the pipeline, most notably the Optimus project and Robotaxi, which is launched but will take several years to expand to a meaningful level that resonates with everyday people.
This is something that investors need to be careful of. Tesla’s projects could take some time to round out, so Jefferies advises that these may carry initial losses, rather than immediate profit. Seasoned Tesla investors have echoed something like this for a long time; they knew going in it would not be an open-and-shut strategy. It was going to take time.
These new projects are no different.
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