Lordstown Motors Corp. shares rallied more than 8% late Wednesday after the electric-vehicle maker reported another quarterly loss but said it is ready to start “limited production” of its all-electric pickup truck in September, with first deliveries early next year.
Lordstown RIDE,
FactSet consensus called for Lordstown to report a loss of 49 cents a share for the quarter. Lordstown is a pre-revenue company.
“We are launching the Endurance with a prudent ramp of production given a challenging industry and supply chain landscape,” Lordstown Chief Executive Angela Strand said in a statement.
“We are on track to begin limited production at the end of September and through the fourth quarter and complete vehicle validation and regulatory approvals in December and January,” she said.
“Selected” early customers are likely to get their trucks early next year, with commercial deliveries scheduled for the second quarter of 2022, she said. The production ramp will get steeper in the second half of next year, Strand said.
See also: Workhorse books $52 million loss on Lordstown Motors’ stock investment
Strand also said the company is looking for “potential strategic partners” to use the company’s “well situated, 6.2 million-square-foot manufacturing plant and 650-acre campus” in Ohio.
“The size and scope of our facility is such that we could easily accommodate additional manufacturing partners while still affording us the ability to build a successful Endurance program and leverage its skateboard for additional models in the years ahead,” she said.
The company guided for capital expenditures between $375 million and $400 million for the year, largely related to prepayments for hard-tool purchases. It pegged 2021 research and development expenses at between $310 million and $320 million.
Lordstown said it expects to end the third quarter with cash and equivalents between $225 million and $275 million “without including any funds from a capital raise.” It did not detail plans for such a raise.
Lordstown shares have lost 72% this year and more than 50% in the past 12 months. That contrasts with gains of 18% and 33% for the S&P 500 index SPX,
The Justice Department reportedly has launched a probe into the company’s dealings and the electric-truck maker has disclosed a SEC inquiry.
Lordstown recently added a “going concern” warning to regulatory filings, following the departure of key executives and doubts over its order book, with the company clarifying that orders are not binding.
