EV Stocks Continue Rally As Short Sellers Question Valuations

Electric vehicle stocks were outperforming the broader market Monday.

The gains are being led by U.S.-listed, China-based EV manufacturers Nio Inc – ADR NIO, Xpeng Inc – ADR XPEV and Li Auto Inc. LI.

Nio Recovers From Citron Crash: Nio shares, which fell about 16% to an intra-day low of $40.55 following short seller Citron's warning Nov. 13 of unsustainable valuation, have staged a recovery following strong quarterly results.

Monday's rally has taken Nio past its previous all-time high of $54.20, with Nio trading as high as $54.50 intraday.

Nio was last seen trading up 12.6% at $54.46.

Xpeng Skyrockets: Nio's domestic peer, which announced more details on a limited-edition version of its flagship vehicle P7, called the P7 Wing, at the Guangzhou Motor Show Saturday, was seen jumping 33.13% at $71.69.

Another Chinese EV player, Li Auto, which listed its ADSs on the Nasdaq in late July, was rallying 14.48% to $43.64.

US EV Stocks Join The Party: EV pioneer Tesla Inc TSLA, which is to be added to the S&P 500 index, is also trading in record territory.

Apart from the general optimism regarding the EV space, the stock is getting a boost from Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives raising the bull-case price target for Tesla to $1,000.

At last check, Tesla was gaining 6.46% to $521.23. 

Related Link: Wall Street Bullish On Nio Despite Recent Pullback: 'A Must-Own Growth Stock'

Other EV-levered stocks such as Workhorse Group Inc WKHS and Nikola Corporation NKLA were also trading in positive territory. 

Electric vehicle charging station Blink Charging Co BLNK, which was called out by short seller Citron earlier Monday for selling a commodity product with no brand, is up over 45%.

Electrameccanica Vehicles Corp SOLO, a Canadian manufacturer of a single-seat, three-wheeled EV, the SOLO, was an exception in the group, trading down 5.64% at $10.20 at last check. 

"Whenever a sector gets hot – like electric vehicles today – you'll often have better luck on the short side by avoiding the market leaders like Tesla (TSLA) and instead shorting the total frauds or promotions that are going along for the ride," Whitney Tilson said in his daily newsletter.

Benzinga's Take: General optimism concerning the massive market opportunity for EV makers — and the pro-green energy Biden administration taking office in January — have continued to lift the stocks in the sector. 

Photo courtesy of Nio.