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Investor's Corner

Rivian, down 45% since IPO, poised for 160% surge: Morgan Stanley

Credit: Rivian Automotive

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Rivian (NASDAQ: RIVN) stock is down 45 percent since its initial public offering in November when shares started publicly trading at around $106.75. Currently, Rivian shares hover around the $55 mark. Its drastic fall in the first few months of being publicly traded is not keeping Morgan Stanley’s Adam Jonas from shying away from an incredibly bullish position, stating it will surge around 160 percent from its current “overly depressed” levels.

At the time of writing, Rivian shares were trading at $55.24.

Rivian had all the advantages an up-and-coming automaker would want. It has a savvy CEO, a sizeable investment backed by Amazon, one of the largest companies globally, and a line of products that had consumers thirsty for more information. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the company’s initial production dates back several times. After a year of delays, Rivian started delivering the R1T pickup late last year.

Rivian ends 2021 with 1,015 vehicles produced, COO retires from company

In terms of its stock performance, things have not gone according to plan. Rivian peaked at levels just shy of $180 per share, fed mostly by analyst narratives that pushed the company as “the next big thing” in the sector. However, EV production is proving increasingly difficult for many automakers. Long-standing OEMs like Volkswagen and GM have struggled in early projects, and startups like Rivian and Lucid are yielding numbers that are just fractional compared to industry leaders Tesla.

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However, Tesla’s production history also showed lagging periods early on, only to iron out the bottlenecks and become the largest manufacturer of EVs, ramping to over 900,000 annual units fourteen years after producing its first model.

Jonas, who has covered the EV sector for years, says if any auto company can dig itself out of the depths, it’s Rivian.

Credit: MotorTrend

“An IPO that preceded the December market top, the reality-check of supply chain bottlenecks (normal in auto land, perhaps not normal in tech land), and the gut-check of having partner Amazon exercise its right to secure EDVs from alternative vendors (Stellantis, Daimler) has shaken investor confidence and, we think, provides an excellent opportunity to gain exposure to a company, product cycle, and business model that we believe has a greater chance [of] being a winner in this industry than most other EV competitors,” Jonas wrote in a note to investors. “While Rivian is at a far earlier stage in its industrial journey than Tesla, we do not see this company as just a ‘concept stock’ either. The road to ramping production will be choppy, but we expect largely due to supply rather than demand.”

Rivian shares spiked briefly earlier this week following reports of an increase in production output of the R1T. Rivian was unable to comment on the matter when we asked for clarification. The routine sell-off of tech stocks this week has also likely contributed to Rivian’s sharp fall. After all, Tesla’s impressive Q4 2021 Earnings Call did not yield any gains in the way of the industry leader, as the company’s stock is down nearly 8% this week.

Jonas holds a $147 price target for Rivian, with a “Buy” rating. Jonas is ranked 656th, out of 7,760 analysts. He has a success rate of 52% with an average return of 11.4%, according to TipRanks.

Disclosure: Joey Klender is not a RIVN Shareholder.

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I’d love to hear from you! If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.

Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Investor's Corner

Tesla welcomes Chipotle President Jack Hartung to its Board of Directors

Tesla announced the addition of its new director in a post on social media platform X.

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Credit: @ArthurFromX/X

Tesla has welcomed Chipotle president Jack Hartung to its Board of Directors. Hartung will officially start his tenure at the electric vehicle maker on June 1, 2025.

Tesla announced the addition of its new director in a post on social media platform X.

Jack Hartung’s Role

With Hartung’s addition, the Tesla Board will now have nine members. It’s been a while since the company added a new director. Prior to Hartung, the last addition to the Tesla Board was Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia back in 2022. As noted in a Reuters report, Hartung will serve on the Tesla Board’s audit committee. He will also retire from his position as president and chief strategy officer at Chipotle, and transition into a senior advisor’s role at the restaurant chain, next month.

Hartung has had a long career in the Mexican grill, joining Chipotle in 2002. He held several positions in the company, most recently serving as Chipotle’s President and Chief Strategy Officer. Tesla highlighted Hartung’s accomplishments in a post on its official account on X.

“Over the past 20+ years under Jack’s financial leadership, Chipotle has seen significant growth with over 3,700 restaurants today across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Jack was named ‘CFO of the Year’ by Orange County Business Journal and Best CFO in the restaurant category by Institutional Investor,” Tesla wrote in its post on X.

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Tesla Board and Musk

Tesla is a controversial company with a controversial CEO, so it is no surprise that the Board of Directors tend to get flak as well. Two weeks ago, for example, Tesla Board Chair Robyn Denholm slammed The Wall Street Journal for publishing an article alleging that company directors had considered a search for a potential successor to Elon Musk. Denholm herself has also been criticized for offloading her TSLA shares.

More recently, news emerged suggesting that the Tesla Board of Directors had formed a special committee aimed at exploring a new pay package for CEO Elon Musk. The committee is reportedly comprised of Tesla board Chair Robyn Denholm and independent director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, and they would be exploring alternative compensation methods for Musk’s contributions to the company.

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Investor's Corner

Rivian stock rises as analysts boost price targets post Q1 earnings

Rivian impressed with smaller-than-expected losses & strong revenue, pushing analysts to raise price targets.

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(Credit: Rivian)

Rivian stock is gaining traction as Wall Street analysts raise price targets following the electric vehicle (EV) maker’s first-quarter earnings report. Despite a dip after the announcement, optimism surrounds Rivian’s cost control and upcoming lower-priced cars.

Last week, Rivian reported a better-than-expected Q1 gross profit, surpassing Wall Street’s forecasts with adjusted losses of $0.48 per share against expectations of $0.92 per share. The company also reported a revenue of $1.24 billion compared to the $1.01 billion anticipated.

However, the EV automaker cut its 2025 delivery forecast and capital spending due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs. It explained that it is “not immune to the impacts of the global trade and economic environment.” RIVN stock dropped nearly 6% post-earnings, closing at $12.72 per share.

Wall Street remains upbeat about Rivian, citing progress toward launching lower-priced vehicles in 2026 and effective cost management. On Monday, Stifel analyst Stephen Gengaro raised his RIVN price target to $18 from $16, maintaining a “Buy” rating. He highlighted Rivian’s “solid progress” toward key milestones.

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Conversely, Bernstein’s Daniel Roeska gave RIVN a “Sell” rating. However, Roeska also lifted his Rivian price target to $7.05 from $6.10, acknowledging “better” Q1 results. He warned that profitability remains distant and hinges on multiple product launches by the decade’s end.

Overall, Wall Street’s average price target for RIVN climbed from $14.18 to $14.31, a modest 13-cent increase reflecting positive sentiment. About one-third of analysts covering Rivian rate it a Buy, compared to the S&P 500’s average Buy-rating ratio of 55%.

On Monday, Rivian stock rose 2.7% to $14.64, slightly trailing the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, which gained 3.3% and 2.8%, respectively. The uptick may also stem from broader market gains tied to news of a temporary U.S.-China tariff suspension.

As Rivian navigates trade challenges and scales production at its Illinois factory, its Q1 performance and analyst support signal resilience. With lower-priced EVs on the horizon, Rivian’s strategic moves could bolster its position in the competitive EV market, offering investors cautious optimism for long-term growth.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla (TSLA) poised to hit $1 trillion valuation again amid reports of Trump China deal

TSLA stock was up about 8% at $322.56 per share on Monday’s premarket.

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla shares (NASDAQ:TSLA) are on a tear on Monday’s premarket amidst reports that the United States and China have agreed to significantly roll back tariffs on each other’s goods for an initial 90-day period.

As of writing, the premarket price of TSLA shares suggests that the electric vehicle maker might end Monday with a $1 trillion valuation once more.

Tesla and China

TSLA stock was up about 8% at $322.56 per share on Monday’s premarket. As noted in a report from Barron’s, these prices suggest that the company could achieve a trillion-dollar valuation again, a level not seen since late February. Similar to Tesla, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were also up 2.8% and 2.1%, respectively, on Monday’s premarket.

The United States and China’s decision to roll back its tariffs would likely be appreciated by CEO Elon Musk. Despite working for the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and despite Tesla being least affected by the Trump administration’s tariffs due to its strong domestic supply chains in the United States, China, and Europe, Musk has noted that he is a supporter of non-predatory tariffs.

The United States and China’s Agreement

In a joint statement from the United States and China posted on the White House’s official website, the two countries agreed to lower reciprocal tariffs on each other by 115% for 90 days. This means that the United States will temporarily lower its overall tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, as noted in an ABC 12 report. China, on the other hand, will also lower its tariffs on American goods from 125% to 10%.

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The talks were led by Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, as per the joint statement. Bessent shared his thoughts about the matter in a comment in Geneva. “The consensus from both delegations is neither side wants to be decoupled, and what have occurred with these very high tariffs … was an equivalent of an embargo, and neither side wants that. We do want trade. We want more balance in trade. And I think both sides are committed to achieving that,” he said. 

A spokesperson from China’s Commerce Ministry also shared a statement about the matter. As per the spokesperson, the deal was an “important step by both sides to resolve differences through equal-footing dialogue and consultation, laying the groundwork and creating conditions for further bridging gaps and deepening cooperation.”

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