What happened
Rivian Automotive (RIVN -2.21%) shares have been on the move higher, rising double digits over the last five trading days. That trend continued early Thursday with shares jumping as much as 2.5% in early trading. The stock lost some of that gain, however, by 2:02 p.m. EST. At that time, Rivian shares were higher by 1.1%.
So what
The early gains were spurred by a report from analyst Jordan Levy with Truist bank yesterday. Levy released results from a survey his firm performed with potential electric vehicle (EV) buyers that was reported by Barron's. The results showed Rivian is getting better positioned to grow its business on multiple fronts. But other news in the EV sector today may have reminded investors just how difficult growing that business can be.
Now what
The consumer survey showed Rivian has continued to increase its brand awareness, and customers appear to be more willing than anticipated to buy electric pickup trucks. Levy's survey also placed Rivian tied with Tesla for the top electric truck brands consumers were considering. Both came in ahead of the global traditional automakers that are beginning to roll out electric pickup truck models, too.
Image source: Rivian Automotive.
Investors may be considering its placement next to Tesla as a double edged sword today. That's because Tesla is recalling more than 350,000 of its vehicles for problems with its Full Self-Driving Beta software that could be resulting in crashes. That's a reminder that the start-up has an uphill battle to grow sales and attain profitability.
It shouldn't be surprising that Rivian's brand awareness is gaining traction, though. The company has consistently increased the backlog of preorders for its R1 platform trucks over the last year and a half. Investors will find out if that trend continues when Rivian reports its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 28.
