Rivian Pops 6% in Premarket on Positive Q3 Report and Optimistic Guidance

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: $RIVN) reported Q3 2023 financial results that surpassed analysts’ expectations and raised the production guidance for the full year. The company’s shares soared 6% in the Wednesday premarket session. 

Rivian Hikes Full-Year Production to 54,000

Shares of Rivian jumped 6% in premarket trading on Wednesday after the electric vehicle (EV) startup posted a smaller-than-expected loss in Q3 and raised its guidance for the full fiscal 2023. 

Notably, the carmaker reported a loss per share of $1.19 in the third quarter, significantly smaller than the estimated loss per share of $1.31. Sales stood at $1.34 billion in the three-month period, largely in line with Wall Street’s consensus estimates. For comparison, Rivian reported a $1.08 loss from sales of $1.1 billion in the previous quarter. 

Looking ahead, the company hiked its production outlook for the full year by 2,000 vehicles to 54,000 units, citing stronger demand for its trucks and SUVs. The announcement sent Rivian’s shares 4% higher in after-hours trading on Tuesday before extending further in today’s premarket. 

The optimistic forecast marks an important step forward for Rivian but also for the broader EV industry that continues to deal with the pressure of high inflation and the pricing war started by Tesla earlier in the year. These factors significantly ate into Tesla’s profitability in Q3, with its total operating margin declining from 17.2% to 7.6% year-over-year.

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Rivian Posts Record Quarterly Vehicle Production

The updated outlook for the full year implies that Rivian expects to produce around 14,300 in Q4, which is higher than the analysts’ projections of 14,000. Deliveries and production numbers are expected to mirror one another closely. 

Rivian produced 16,304 vehicles in Q3, marking a record-high quarterly number. The company produced 13,992 units in Q2 2023 and 7,363 in the year-ago period. 

After a myriad of supply chain headwinds, the EV startup may be starting to recover some of the lost ground, analysts noted. 

“Rivian showed resilience. Rivian appears to be benefiting from a more favorable commodity pricing environment, order book realization and progress toward scale.”

– Global X analyst Alec Lucas wrote.

However, the company’s shares crashed significantly earlier this month when Rivian announced a sooner-than-expected bond issuance in October. Its performance remains almost unchanged year-to-date, rising just 0.5%.

Given recent improvements, do you expect Rivian stock to rise significantly in 2024? Let us know in the comments below.