Stocks of high-end electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Lucid Group ( LCID 7.54% ) surged by 22.9% this week as of Thursday, trading at 2:20 p.m. ET, based on information from S&P Global’s Financial Market Analysis Division .
The electric vehicle manufacturer had already released its earnings earlier in August, but its CEO grabbed headlines at the Monterey Car Week this week. He expressed an optimistic view about the forthcoming Gravity SUV and highlighted how Lucid’s technology stacks up against competitors, particularly addressing the major player in the industry. Tesla .
Lucid’s CEO claims that their company has assumed the leadership role as Tesla has become preoccupied.
During Monterey Car Week, Lucid showcased its latest SUV, the Lucid Gravity, which might significantly impact the company’s future. In an interview at the event, Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson mentioned that the market potential for the Gravity is six times larger than that of the Lucid Air, the company’s main sedan model introduced in 2021. Rawlinson emphasized, “The launch of Gravity will greatly enhance our financial growth through increased scale. Achieving larger scale is crucial for us, and this represents a major advancement in that direction.”
It’s important to mention that the introduction of a Gravity vehicle in Monterey was expected. At the end of July, Lucid announced that the first Gravity vehicle had rolled off the pre-production line.
This week’s event might have given attendees optimism about the Gravity, which is scheduled to be delivered to customers by the year’s end and will play a crucial role in Lucid’s future and financial health. The SUV will be priced at under $80,000 and offer a range of 440 miles per charge, making it an exceptional option in terms of range and price for a new luxury electric vehicle.
Rawlinson, who previously worked as an engineer at Tesla and led the research and development of the first Model S, seized the chance to criticize his old company. During the interview, Rawlinson described Tesla as “distracted,” pointing out its focus on robotaxis and CEO Elon Musk’s involvement in social media, artificial intelligence, space exploration, and other contentious fields, stating:
Rawlinson was probably alluding to a LinkedIn post he shared earlier this month, where he highlighted that the Lucid Air Pure achieved 5 miles per kilowatt-hour (kWh), approximately 25% more efficient than the Tesla Model S, which gets about 4.
Lucid still needs to prove itself.
Before investors consider switching from Tesla stock to Lucid due to the current state of technology, it’s important to remember that Tesla remains profitable and has a market cap while the company is still facing significant losses, its market cap stands at $680 billion, in stark contrast to Lucid’s modest $9 billion market cap.
Although Lucid exceeded expectations in the second quarter by generating $200.6 million in revenue, the company’s net losses were greater than anticipated, resulting in a significant operating loss of $787.4 million. Moreover, the quarterly revenue fell short of the company’s own projections. expense of merchandise sold amounting to $470.4 million.
To become profitable, Lucid needs to increase production significantly to maximize the capacity of its factories. This makes the success of the Gravity model very important. Although the recent Monterey event brought some positive signs, it’s still uncertain whether the Gravity will achieve the desired success. Consequently, investing in Lucid continues to be quite speculative, despite its recent performance.
