A new month means new delivery numbers for Chinese electric-vehicle makers and another chance for investors to check in on the health of the companies and overall demand for EVs in China, the world’s market for new cars and for EVs.
November deliveries come right after the three U.S.-listed Chinese EV makers reported earnings, which included fourth-quarter guidance for vehicle deliveries. That means investors had an idea what to expect for deliveries. The results, posted Wednesday, didn’t disappoint and the stocks were all moving higher.
NIO
For NIO (ticker: NIO), the results represent a relief. NIO reported November vehicle deliveries of 10,878. It’s a strong bounce back from October’s result.
NIO delivered just 3,667 vehicles in October. The company said it took plant downtime to retool its operations. And in its third-quarter earnings release this past month, NIO management said it expected the company would deliver about 24,500 in the fourth quarter. That implies November and December deliveries of about 20,800 vehicles, which works out to about 10,400 each month.
November was good enough. It was also a new record. NIO delivered 10,628 vehicles in September, which was the prior monthly record for the company.
U.S.-listed shares of NIO rose 3.9% in premarket trading. S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 1.1% and 0.8%, respectively.
XPeng
XPeng (XPEV) reported November vehicle deliveries of 15,613, a 270% increase from a year earlier. That’s a record as well. XPeng delivered 10,412 vehicles in September, which was a monthly record at the time.
In its third-quarter earnings release, XPeng management said it expected deliveries of about 35,500 vehicles in the fourth quarter. XPeng delivered 10,138 vehicles in October, implying November and December deliveries of about 25,400 vehicles, which works out to almost 12,700 each month.
U.S.-listed shares of XPeng rose 4.4% in premarket trading on Wednesday.
LI Auto
Li Auto (LI) reported November vehicle deliveries of 13,485.
In its third-quarter earnings release, Li Auto projected about 31,000 vehicle deliveries for the fourth quarter. The company delivered 7,649 vehicles in October, implying November and December deliveries of about 23,400, which works out to about 11,700 deliveries a month.
November cruised by that figure and Li stock is up about 5.9% in premarket trading.
Li delivered about 9,400 vehicles in August. That was the prior monthly record.
Things Are Good
The solid delivery figures demonstrate strong demand for EVs in China. That’s a positive for Li and its peers including Tesla (TSLA).
The figures also demonstrate that Chinese EV makers are getting the semiconductors they need to build cars. A global semiconductor shortage has constrained global car production all year. Li, for instance, said its assembly capacity is about 14,000 units a month. It hasn’t been able to hit that because of a lack of chips. A resolution to the semiconductor supply squeeze in 2022 should be another positive for the entire automotive industry.
Exactly how the three Chinese EV stocks move Wednesday might have something to do with recent trading. Coming into Wednesday trading, U.S.-listed shares of XPeng have risen more than 17% over the past month. Li shares gained more than 14%.
The S&P and Dow Jones Industrial Average have fallen 1% and 4%, respectively, over the same span.
NIO stock has been the worst performer, falling more than 5% over the past month. Shares were hurt by a share sale completed in November. The company raised about $2 billion.
Write to Al Root at [email protected]
