As Nio Day 2021 Approaches Here's What Nio Investors Tell Benzinga They Expect

Nio, Inc. NIO shares have underperformed their peers in the year-to-date period, and sell-side analysts as well as investors are betting on a turnaround, helped by imminent catalysts.

One of them is materializing this week, and all eyes are on the Chinese EV maker as it gears up for its fifth annual "Nio Day" event.

The D-Day, Venue & Theme: The Nio Day 2021 event is scheduled to be held at the Olympic Sports Center in Suzhou, a city located west of Shanghai, on Dec. 18.

Suzhou is a strategically important venue, as it is located in the Jiangsu province and is close to the Zhejiang province, both of which reportedly have numerous Nio users.

The theme for this year's event is "Hello World," with the company reasoning that, with its international foray, it is "embracing a complex and ever-changing world with an open attitude."

There was speculation that the emergence of the omicron variant may affect the timing of this year's Nio Day, although Nio confirmed last week the event will proceed as scheduled.

After preliminary formalities, including health and security checks as well as a warm-up, the main event will begin at 7pm Beijing time and last an hour and a half, the company suggested in a media invite.

Nio uses the gala annual event as a platform for showcasing its recent achievements and its upcoming products and services.

What Nio Has Hinted: Nio has suggested it will have multiple new products for 2022. The company's product portfolio currently consists of the ES6 and ES8 SUVs and the EC6 crossover coupe. A fourth vehicle model, a sedan named ET7, which the company announced at its Nio Day 2020 on Jan. 9, is on the way. The company is likely to begin delivering the model in the first quarter of 2022.

In its third-quarter earnings release, CEO William Li said the company is fully dedicated to accelerating its products and technologies and will bring three new products based on the Nio Technology Platform 2.0 to users in 2022.

The company, however, has not revealed many details on its upcoming products.

Related Link: Nio Analyst Sees This One Catalyst Driving Growth, Ups Price Target

What Nio Investors Are Bracing For: Reports have indicated Nio is all set to launch a new small sedan, probably named ET5, which is relatively cheaper than the ET7. The new sedan will likely be pitched against mid-size EV sedans such as Tesla, Inc.'s TSLA Model 3, Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft's BMWYY i3 and Daimler AG's DDAIF Mercedes C-Class EV.

Nio could announce the EF9, Electricvehicleweb reported, citing the company's registration of the trademark for the vehicle with the China National Intellectual Property Administration. The EF9 could be a high-end convertible, according to reports.

Rumors also suggest that the company may unveil a low-end vehicle model under a different brand name, which Nio has also hinted at in the past.

Benzinga asked its Twitter followers about expectations for the Nio Day event. A majority seems to expect an ET5 unveiling at the event. A few also hope for the low-end model under a different brand name. However, not many subscribe to the idea that the EF9 sports car will make its appearance.

Nio investors also do not think the company will hand over first deliveries of its ET7 sedan ahead of schedule at the event.

In a wild guess, a Twitter follower proposed that an EV van could be announced at the event.

How Nio's Stock Will React: The 2020 event proved extremely positive for Nio stock, which scaled to an all-time high in the very next session.

The company has held 3 Nio Days since it went public. The first Nio Day was held in 2017 ahead of public listing of its shares. Here is how the stock reacted to each of these events:

Benzinga's inquiry with its Twitter followers suggests they are guarded in their outlook for the stock. This could apparently be due to the lean trot of the stock despite a fairly strong performance even in the wake of supply constraints. About 26.2% of the people who responded to our poll expect a pullback, 24.8% see a muted reaction, and another 24.8% call for a 5% rally.

About 24.2% see a 10% plus rally for the stock.

All said and done, the year 2022 promises to be an exciting one for Nio and its stakeholders. Apart from the outlook for a broadened product lineup, the company is likely to expand into more European countries, likely increasing its addressable market opportunity for Nio. Earlier this year, the company set foot in Norway, marking its maiden international foray.

Benzinga will bring to you a live coverage of the event and post-event summary of highlights. Stay tuned!

Related Link: Third Largest US Pension Fund Boosts Nio Holdings By 102%, Sheds Stakes In Alibaba And JD In Q3

Photo: Courtesy of nio.com