(Bloomberg) — Electric-vehicle stocks slumped under pressure on Friday from a rush of negative news, including a fire at Tesla Inc.’s Fremont factory and a short-seller’s report on Lordstown Motors Corp. alleging it of misleading investors.
Lordstown was the biggest decliner in the group, tumbling as much as 23%, and dragging down the stock price of Workhorse Group Inc., which owns a stake in the company. Tesla sank 4.8%, trimming its weekly advance. The Thursday fire in its factory was contained by fire crews with no reports of injury.
The latest moves dashed the hopes for a recovery in the sector this week. While EV stocks rallied last year, investors have lately turned more jittery on high-multiple shares as Treasury yields climbed, raising concern over valuations. Legacy auto companies such as General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Volkswagen AG have also turned up the heat on the EV startups by unveiling aggressive plans for their own electric lineups.
Recent results from some of the smaller EV companies may have also somewhat dampened enthusiasm. EV charging station operator ChargePoint Holdings Inc.’s shares sank 15% after the company reported a wider loss and smaller revenue for the fourth quarter, and forecast that first-quarter sales will fall sequentially.
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