An investor who wants to dive into the electric-vehicle (EV) sector should be comfortable with a variety of risks. But those risks balance with potential rewards. That's what investing is all about, after all.
Three EV stocks that could supercharge your portfolio in 2022 and beyond ironically also each bring a unique and significant risk as an investment. There's no better way to vet a potential investment than to thoroughly review its risks. If you can be comfortable with the potential downside, now might be a good time to invest in these EV-sector names.
Image source: Getty Images.
Nio: A second wind
Chinese EV-maker Nio (NIO 3.49%) took advantage of excessive investor enthusiasm, which drove its valuation to nearly $100 billion before the company had earned a dime in net earnings. After flirting with bankruptcy as recently as two years ago, the company raised money in the capital markets, and now has about $7.3 billion in cash on its balance sheet as of Sept. 30, 2021.
That second wind has resulted in the company delivering more than 150,000 cumulative vehicles, as of the end of November. Nio reports monthly deliveries, and the below chart shows how fast they have ramped up shipments since the start of 2020.
Data source: Nio. Chart by author.
Nio is also preparing to double its capacity and add new models, which hindered production in October 2021. The company took production down for the first half of the month in preparation for the new ET7 luxury sedan it will begin selling early in 2022. The increase in production capacity comes as the company is branching out of its native China into Europe. It has established a presence in Norway and intends to deliver vehicles in Germany next year.
Those two markets should lead global growth in EVs, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). EV sales in China and Europe led the world in 2020, with a combined total of 2.7 million units. In its 2021 global EV outlook, the agency offered two scenarios for the EV sector over the next decade.
By 2030, it expects China and Europe to continue to lead the way with at least 16.6 million vehicles and as many as 25.3 million, if government initiatives focus more on sustainability. Nio looks to be in a prime spot in the biggest markets for explosive growth in the coming years, giving investors an opportunity, as long as the company executes well.
Lucid's luxury electric Air sedan. Image source: Lucid Group.
Lucid: High expectations
Analysts and investors following the EV sector have been watching Lucid Group (LCID 1.19%) since well before it went public by merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in late July. Peter Rawlinson, the company's CEO and chief technology officer (CTO), worked as lead engineer at Tesla on its Model S development program. That made some believe his new company and its luxury electric sedans could be the first true competition for the leading EV company.
Lucid provided investors with lofty goals and projections prior to its public debut. Without expecting any meaningful revenue in 2021, the company said in a July 2021 investor presentation that it expects sales to exceed $2 billion in 2022. With plans to introduce its next vehicle, the Gravity luxury SUV, in late 2023, it hopes to be close to $10 billion in revenue for 2024.
But the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is scrutinizing several start-up companies that have gone public via SPAC and is now looking into certain early projections and statements that Lucid provided. Investors don't yet know the details of that subpoena, but it illuminates another risk associated with investing in early stage EV companies.
The business itself is off to a good start, however. Lucid's first car launched on schedule, and the Air has won accolades, including being named MotorTrend 2022 Car of the Year. It also has the highest EV battery-range rating given by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), at 520 miles. Lucid may be on a path to greatness, but it still has a long road ahead. With a market cap of over $73 billion just as it is beginning production, it will need to execute perfectly to justify its valuation.
ChargePoint: Exceeding early projections
EV-charging network leader ChargePoint Holdings (CHPT -3.73%) also went public through a SPAC merger and has reported multiple financial updates as a public company already. How Lucid measures up to its own projections remains to be seen, but so far, ChargePoint has achieved what it told investors it would, and more.
In the company's fiscal third-quarter 2022 report released this week, management increased revenue guidance for the fiscal-year period ending Jan. 31, 2022 for the second time since its public debut. ChargePoint told investors in a July presentation that it expected fiscal-year revenue of $198 million. That's now been moved up to a range of $235 million to $240 million.
ChargePoint is also off to a fine start as a public company. It expects to continue to be the leading North American charging-network company and is also expanding in Europe. ChargePoint's gross margin increased 500 basis points to 25% in its most-recent quarter, compared to the prior-year period.
Though the company reported a larger net loss year over year, it increased revenue by 79%. As it builds out its physical charging ports, it will look toward profitability through its network subscription services. Its risks should also not be minimized.
There will be plenty of competition, but ChargePoint has a head start and could be in position to gain a large piece of the rapidly growing EV charging-services pie.
