Nio’s Big Announcement
Chinese EV maker Nio (NYSE:NIO) saw a nice boost to start the week of trading as the company announced a new model that will debut at some point in 2022. The new ES7 SUV is a five-seater that the company says will be a higher model than the current ES6 SUV. The announcement comes as the company is preparing to launch both its ET7 and ET5 vehicles, the latter of which is primed to be a direct competitor to Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Model 3 sedan.
This now makes the third of three new vehicle models that Nio promised to release this year after not releasing any new models in 2021. Furthermore, Nio is also reportedly moving closer to production for its mass market line of vehicles that it has rumored to be in development for with Warren Buffett-backed BYD. After a lackluster year for Nio’s stock in 2021, we could be seeing all of the groundwork being laid for a strong year of performance in 2022. Wall Street analysts agree as the average price target for Nio remains over $60 per share, with the highest being $87.
A recent January sales report from the Chinese Passenger Car Association shows that total car sales dropped heavily in the month of January on both a year over year and sequential monthly basis. There are some things that are believed to have hit the market, including the early Lunar New Year holiday as well as a lowering of government subsidies for consumers purchasing new energy vehicles. Perhaps most notably, Tesla’s market share in China fell significantly as the industry leader seems to have lost ground to some domestic brands in the market.
Hedge Funds Buy the Dip With Rivian
Shares of electric truck maker Rivian (NASDAQ:RIVN) were also trading higher to start the week as a pair of hedge funds initiated a major stake in the stock last quarter. Notably, George Soros’ fund Soros Fund Management bought 19.8 million shares of Rivian in December. Another fund, Dan Sundheim’s D1 Capital Partners also initiated a stake in Rivian last quarter, with a stake valued at $1.6 billion. Both funds are obviously underwater right now with their initial investments, but it does show that institutions are buying the dip in the electric vehicle sector right now. D1 Capital Partners also added to its position in Tesla last quarter.
RIvian also benefited from the rise in electric truck commercials from Super Bowl weekend. Most notably, there were several ads for Chevrolet’s new Electric Silverado truck from General Motors (NYSE:GM), a model that is likely going to be a direct competitor to Rivian’s R1T truck. Although it does mean that the electric truck market is gaining competition, it does provide exposure for the sector in general, and will lead to more attention being brought to other brands like Rivian. I previously wrote about my bearish skepticism about Rivian’s short-term upside, but I do agree with Soros and Sundheim that over the long-term, Rivian’s current prices could be a nice entry point.
Rate this article