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NIO Incurs Y/Y Wider Q4 Loss, Registers 49% Sales Growth

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NIO Inc. (NIO - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2021 loss per American Depositary Share (ADS) of 21 cents, wider than the year-ago loss of 16 cents amid higher operating expenses. The China-based electric vehicle (EV) maker posted revenues of $1,553.6 million, up 49.1% year over year on the back of robust deliveries.

NIO delivered 25,034 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2021, including 5,683 ES8s, 12,180 ES6s and 7,171 EC6s. Total deliveries surged 44.3% year over year.

NIO Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

NIO Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

NIO Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | NIO Inc. Quote

Key Tidbits

Revenues generated from vehicle sales amounted to $1,446.1 million, representing a 49.3% jump from the corresponding quarter of 2020. The increase in vehicle sales was mainly attributable to higher deliveries achieved from a greater product mix offered to customers. Other sales amounted to $107.5 million, up a whopping 118.5% from the year-ago period.

Vehicle margin for the reported quarter was 20.9% compared with the year-ago period’s 17.2%. Higher delivery volumes and average selling price as well as lower material cost led to the improvement in vehicle margin. Gross margin was 17.2%, flat year on year. Research & development (R&D) and selling, general & administrative (SG&A) costs were $286.9 million and $370.1 million, reflecting a year-over-year surge of 120.5% and 95.4%, respectively.

Cash and cash equivalents totaled $2,406.2 million as of Dec 31, 2021. Long-term debt was $1,528.3 million. NIO — which currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) — expects first-quarter 2022 deliveries in the band of 25,000-26,000 vehicles, signaling a year-over-year uptick of 24.6-29.6%. Revenues are envisioned between $1,511 million and $1,567 million, indicating a year-over-year increase of 20-25.1%.

Peer Releases

EV king Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2021 results on Jan 26. The company reported earnings of $2.54, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.11. A higher-than-expected automotive gross profit resulted in this outperformance. Precisely, automotive gross profit came in at $4,882 million, topping the consensus mark of $4,254 million. The bottom line also compared favorably with the year-ago earnings of 80 cents a share.

Total revenues came in at $17,719 million, beating the consensus mark of $16,070 million. The top line also witnessed year-over-year growth of 65%. Tesla reported record fourth-quarter 2021 deliveries totaling 308,650 vehicles, up 71% from the prior-year quarter. TSLA generated free cash flow of $2,775 million during the quarter, up 48.5% year on year.

Li Auto (LI - Free Report) , the rising EV star of China, posted fourth-quarter 2021 results on Feb 25. The company’s revenues for the quarter under review summed $1.67 billion, up 156.1% year over year. Adjusted earnings came in at 11 cents a share. Vehicle margin was 22.3%, improving from 17.1% from the corresponding quarter of 2020. Li Auto sold 35,221 Li ONEs during the quarter under discussion, up 143.5% year over year.

Operating expenses totaled $369.7 million (SG&A and R&D costs of $176.7 million and $193 million, respectively) for the fourth quarter of 2021. Li Auto exited the quarter with cash/cash equivalents, restricted cash, time deposits and short-term investments of $7.87 billion. Free cash flow totaled $253.5 million.

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.


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