What happened
Summer may be winding down, but shares of Innoviz Technologies (INVZ -3.48%) have been red-hot this week. The lidar company announced two news items over the past few days -- one of which is particularly intriguing -- that have stoked investors' hopes that the company's growth trajectory remains strong.
As of 2:21 p.m. ET on Friday, shares of Innoviz are up 12.9%, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
So what
While many Americans were celebrating Labor Day to start the week, Innoviz was busy informing investors about its expanding presence in China. On Monday, Innoviz announced that HiRain Technologies, a leading provider of automotive solutions for the Chinese market, will supply its vehicles located at ports throughout China with InnovizOne lidar sensors.
Lauding the partnership, Omer Keilaf, CEO of Innoviz, stated, "The deployment of HiRain's autonomous vehicle and V2X [vehicle-to-anything] systems using InnovizOne LiDAR comes at an especially opportune time, as it will greatly improve efficiencies and enable 24/7 operations."
Perhaps the more enticing news item this week was the company's announcement that "one of the leading Asia-based automotive OEMs [original equipment manufacturer]" has selected it to be a supplier of lidar sensors for large-scale production of passenger vehicles. Neglecting to identify the company by name, Innoviz had made a similar announcement in May -- only later to clarify that the partner was Volkswagen.
Innoviz doesn't expect to generate revenue from the deal with the automotive OEM until 2024.
Now what
It's clear that investors in this lidar stock are sensing future growth is becoming more likely. Based on how the company refrained from identifying Volkswagen last May, it seems reasonable to speculate that the new partner is a top-tier manufacturer. Regarding the deal in China, it seems investors are hopeful that it's a harbinger of similar deals at other global ports.
