Rivian stock rallied to its highest daily percentage gain ever Friday as part of a broader automaker rally, extending the Tesla rival’s strong run since the election and defying conventional wisdom about what President-elect Donald Trump’s stance on electric vehicle subsidies may mean for Rivian.
Key Facts
- Rivian stock rose 24.5% to $16.49, the steepest one-day gain since the company went public in November 2021, topping the prior mark set in June.
- The California-based automaker registered its highest intraday share price since July 23.
- The rally followed Rivian’s morning report revealing slightly better fourth-quarter car delivery data than Wall Street expected.
- The 14,183 vehicles delivered last quarter topped consensus analyst estimates of about 13,000, according to FactSet, while Rivian’s 51,579 deliveries across 2024 edged out the consensus forecast of about 51,000.
Tesla Stock Bounces Back
Overall, American auto stocks performed well on Friday. Ford, General Motors, and Tesla all saw their stock prices rise by 2%, 1%, and 8%, respectively.
Ford and General Motors both reported their best annual car sales since 2019, boosting their stock prices, while Tesla recovered from a 6% loss Thursday after fourth-quarter delivery data fell short of analyst expectations.
Tesla’s rebound occurred as some analysts argued that the delivery data was a blip for the world’s largest automaker, making Friday the best day for Tesla stock since mid-November. The S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq both rose more than 1% on Friday, as the automaker-led rally gained traction.
Big Number
56%. That’s how much Rivian stock has risen since Election Day, outperforming every S&P 500 stock except Tesla (63%) and Palantir, the hot artificial intelligence-focused defense contractor (also 56%).
The strong Rivian return contrasts with initial analyst concerns that Trump’s reported intention to reduce the federal EV subsidy would harm Rivian and other EV players more than Tesla, which fueled an 8% drop in the first trading session following Trump’s victory.
Contra
Rivian shares are down 90% from their peak shortly after its November 2021 IPO, the largest since Facebook’s debut in 2014.
Rivian’s 52,000 vehicle deliveries in 2024 account for only 3% of Tesla’s 1.79 million deliveries last year, and its $17 billion market capitalization is less than 1% of Tesla’s $1.3 trillion.
Rivian has yet to report a profitable quarter in its brief history as a public company, with EBITDA losses of at least $558 million in each of its 14 quarters.
Key Background
Rivian has received significant institutional support, including a $5 billion investment from Volkswagen in May and a $6.6 billion conditional loan from the Department of Energy in November to build a plant in Georgia.
Rivian accounted for approximately 4% of electric vehicle sales in the United States last year, according to Morgan Stanley research.
Most Rivian vehicles qualify for a $3,750 federal tax credit as part of the government’s electric and hybrid vehicle subsidy, which Trump reportedly intends to repeal shortly after taking office this month, potentially hurting EV demand because it effectively raises the sticker price by the size of the previous subsidy.
