What happened
Rivian Automotive (RIVN 1.03%) keeps pushing forward to grow its business, but investors aren't buying right now. The electric vehicle (EV) start-up announced some new progress this week, but the stock has continued on a weeklong slide that has cut nearly 10% off its share price. Today, the stock had dropped 3% as of 2:18 p.m. ET.
So what
The extended slide of Rivian shares comes as the macroeconomic backdrop appears to be creating what investors feel will be a more difficult environment for the company to build its business and eventually become profitable. Earlier this month Rivian CEO R.J. Scaringe published his first annual letter to shareholders. He reiterated that the company's nearly $17 billion in cash would carry it through its growth and investment goals through 2025. But with inflation concerns, rising interest rates, and anticipated global economic slowdowns, investors may be wondering what will come after that for Rivian.
Rivian opened its first three charging sites of its Adventure Network this week.
Now what
Rivian has branded its electric trucks as off-road and adventure vehicles. One area of investment for the company is to build out a nationwide Rivian Adventure Network of charging locations for its customers. This week, it opened its first three DC fast charging sites for that network to the public.
The first deployments are in Colorado and California, allowing Rivian owners to add up to 140 miles of range in about 20 minutes. The initial locations are home to recreational areas, including Yosemite National Park, Sequoia National Forest, Mammoth Lakes, and Death Valley National Park in California. Rivian expects to continue its investments in the network to ultimately grow to 3,500 fast chargers in 600 different sites.
The company has the funds to continue on its growth plans right now. But investors should be looking ahead, too, and wondering whether the company will be able to support itself through positive cash flow by 2026. If it can't, the environment to raise additional capital is likely to be less amicable than in recent years, helping to explain the stock's ongoing swoon.
