Toyota’s bZ4X is due to hit U.S. roads in mid-2022.
Courtesy Toyota
Electric-vehicle charging company ChargePoint announced a new partnership with Toyota Motor on Tuesday.
The agreement means drivers of Toyota ’s new electric crossover vehicle, the bZ4X, will have access to ChargePoint’s (CHPT) network of EV chargers. ChargePoint’s global charging network includes more than 170,000 ports. In addition, bZ4X drivers can purchase a ChargePoint level 2 charger at Toyota (ticker: TM) dealerships.
A level 2 charger is, essentially, the same as an outlet that homeowners plug larger appliances into; it will charge a car faster than a typical wall socket. The bZ4X is due to hit U.S. roads in mid-2022.
“As esteemed automotive brands like Toyota continue to electrify transportation with new models of cars, trucks, SUVs, and fleet vehicles, ChargePoint continues to enable EV charging wherever drivers live, work, and play,” said ChargePoint CEO Pasquale Romano in the company’s news release.
The partnership wasn’t giving ChargePoint stock much of a boost on Tuesday, however. The stock edged 0.4% higher in recent trading, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average were both up about 0.7%.
Coming into Tuesday trading, ChargePoint stock has fallen about 27% year to date and is down about 51% from its June 52-week high of almost $37 a share. Rising interest rates, inflation, and geopolitical tensions have sapped some investor enthusiasm for richly valued stocks such as ChargePoint.
ChargePoint is expected to generate about $475 million in its fiscal year 2023, which ends in January. That gives the stock a price-to-sales multiple of roughly 14 times.
The $475 million in projected fiscal year 2023 sales is short of the $600 million projected in ChargePoint’s SPAC merger presentation. ChargePoint became a publicly traded company by merging with a special purpose acquisition company about a year ago.
Eighteen analysts cover ChargePoint stock, with 67% rating shares Buy. The average Buy-rating ratio for a small-capitalization stock is about 63%. The average analyst price target for ChargePoint is about $27 a share, up almost 50% from recent levels.
Write to Al Root at [email protected]
