What happened
The stock of Chinese electric car maker XPeng (XPEV 4.24%) got a boost Wednesday morning when the company announced a change in the availability if its shares to Chinese investors. XPeng's American depositary shares popped over 11% in early trading, and still held a gain of 6.2% as of 10:28 a.m. ET.
So what
Effective today, XPeng's ordinary shares trading on the Hong Kong exchange have been included in a trading link called the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect program. The inclusion allows qualified investors in mainland China an easier way to own XPeng stock. This opens up the investor base for the company within certain requirements of the program including daily trading quotas.
Image source: XPeng.
Now what
The company said the move makes XPeng the first EV company listed in Hong Kong to be included in the Stock Connect program. XPeng president Brian Gu said in a statement, "The inclusion will not only further expand and diversify our investor base but also provide the opportunity for our customers, partners and EV and technology investors in China to participate in our exciting growth story."
Xpeng has been growing vehicle sales quickly, most recently reporting that it delivered 12,922 vehicles in January. That represented a year-over-year increase of 115%, and brought its cumulative deliveries to more than 150,000 EVs.
The company is also expanding its manufacturing capacity to satisfy what it calls a significant order backlog, saying it sees strong demand going forward. Investors today are cheering its inclusion in a program that will also expand its potential investor ownership base.
