Rivian Stock Rips Over 7% Higher Premarket: What's Going On?

Shares of electric vehicle startup Rivian Automotive, Inc. RIVN surged in premarket trading on Wednesday.

The Rivian Analyst: Following Rivian’s second-quarter deliveries beat, Needham analyst Chris Pierce reiterated a “buy” rating and raised the price target for the stock from $26 to $28, suggesting a roughly 43% upside from current levels. The analyst also added Rivian to Needham’s ‘Conviction List.’

The Rivian Thesis: Rivian second-quarter deliveries report showed that there is demand for its vehicles, which can be manufactured at increasing scale and leverage on per-unit costs, the analyst said.

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Rivian’s recent success also showed that the company can drive a positive brand halo effect ahead of launching its next generation of vehicles, Pierce said. 

“We think RIVN investor sentiment should start to reflect increased confidence in its R2 vehicle, which opens up a significantly larger TAM,” he said.

The second-quarter production number of about 14,000 units marked a 50% quarter-over-quarter increase, the analyst said. This suggested that production bottleneck concerns were moving to the rearview mirror, and the company is on track to hit the 50,000-unit production goal for the full year, he added.

Rivian Price Action: In premarket trading, Rivian rallied 7.67% to $21.06, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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