Shares of Lucid Group Inc. sank even further into record-low territory following the release of its fourth-quarter delivery numbers, which fell short of expectations. The California-based luxury electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer announced that it delivered 1,734 EVs during the fourth quarter, representing a 19% increase from Q3 but a 10% decrease compared to the same period in the previous year. This delivery figure missed the FactSet consensus estimate of 2,000 EVs.
As a result, Lucid’s stock (LCID) experienced a 6.9% decline in midday trading, marking a new record low and extending its streak of losses to 11 out of the past 11 sessions. This sustained selloff, lasting 11 days and resulting in a 27% drop, has eroded the company’s market capitalization by $2.7 billion.
While Lucid reported production of 2,391 vehicles in Q4, reflecting a 54% increase over Q3, it still experienced a significant decline of approximately 32% compared to the previous year. In terms of annual production for 2023, the company manufactured 8,428 vehicles, which falls within the guidance range provided by Lucid in November 2022 (8,000 to 8,500). However, this figure represents a decrease from the guidance of over 10,000 vehicles provided in August.
Lucid will unveil its full fourth-quarter results on Feb. 21, with analysts surveyed by FactSet predicting widened per-share losses of 31 cents compared to 28 cents in the previous year. Furthermore, revenue is expected to decline by 26% to $189.9 million.
The disappointing delivery figures announced by Lucid coincide with rental-car company Hertz Global Holdings Inc.’s decision to sell approximately one-third of the EVs in its fleet due to weak demand. This news has had a negative impact on other electric vehicle manufacturers, with Tesla Inc., Rivian Automotive Inc., and Nikola Corp. all experiencing stock declines.
In midday trading, Tesla’s stock fell by 3.3% to a two-month low, resulting in a 13.4% decrease over a 10-day period and a market cap reduction of $111.7 billion. Meanwhile, Rivian Automotive Inc.’s stock slid by 3.4% and Nikola Corp. saw a decline of 4.4%.
Additionally, the Global X Autonomous & Electric Vehicles exchange-traded fund (DRIV) dropped by 1.2%, and the S&P 500 index fell by 0.8% during midday trading.
