Tesla Analyst Says Nikola Badger Preorders Should Give Investors Clues To The Electric Pickup Market

Nikola Corporation NKLA, the new kid on the electric vehicle block, has started accepting preorders for its Badger electric pickup truck, which is seen as direct competition to Tesla Inc's TSLA Cybertruck.

The Tesla Analyst: Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives has a Neutral rating on Tesla with a $1,000 price targe

Tesla Vs. Nikola Preorders: The Nikola Badger clearly goes after Tesla's Cybertruck, which has built a "formidable" list of customers since its launch late last year, Ives said in a Monday note. (See his track record here.)

The Badger will be available in two versions:one powered by an EV battery with a 300-mile range and another powered by fuel cells with a 600-mile range, the analyst said. 

Pre-orders for Tesla's Cybertruck stand at a staggering 650,000, and momentum is continuing to build, he said.

Tesla's pickup has an impressive steel framework and looks more out of a "'Blade Runner' sci-fi movie," capitalizing on Musk and his team's penchant for thinking out of the box, Ives said. 

The analyst said he is of the view that pre-order activity for the Badger over the next three to six months will serve as a key data point for investors to get a sense of the market's potential adoption curve.

Tesla Vs. Nikola EV Truck Positioning:  Ives also delved into how both companies would like to position their EV pickups in the market.

"Investors will question if this is a mass market pickup for both Tesla and Nikola going after Ford Motor Company F and General Motors Company GM with 3 million pickup trucks sold annually in the US, or a more niche "wow factor" model that will be more limited in demand/production scale and scope," the analyst said. 

For Tesla to hit Wedbush's $1,500 bull case, one key component will be future success with the pickup market, the Model Y and new vehicle versions and models, according to Wedbush.  

TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares were up 6.39% at $1,073.84 at the time of publication Tuesday, while Nikola shares were down 0.17% at $67.46. 

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Photo courtesy of Nikola.