NIO Inc. shares fell sharply Friday after the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer reported widening losses and issued a revenue outlook that came in well below Wall Street expectations, sparking a broader selloff among Chinese EV stocks.
NIO (NYSE:NIO) shares dropped 7% in premarket trading after the Shanghai-based automaker posted a net loss of RMB7.13 billion ($991 million) for the fourth quarter, significantly larger than the RMB5.59 billion loss reported a year ago. The company also reported a quarterly loss of RMB3.17 per share, missing analysts' consensus estimate of RMB2.12 per share.
Revenue for the quarter totaled RMB19.7 billion ($2.74 billion), short of the RMB20.81 billion forecast by analysts. NIO delivered 72,689 vehicles during the period, a 45% year-over-year increase but slightly below the projected 73,207 units.
Vehicle sales amounted to RMB17.48 billion, reflecting a 13% increase from a year earlier. NIO's vehicle margin improved to 13.1%, up from 11.9% the previous year, roughly in line with market expectations.
CEO William Bin Li said, "In 2024, we achieved a new delivery record of 221,970 vehicles. Throughout the year, NIO brand maintained its position as the leader in China's BEV market for vehicles priced over RMB300,000, capturing a 40% market share." He also highlighted that the ONVO L60 model had secured a top-three position in China's BEV SUV market priced between RMB200,000 and RMB300,000.
However, the company's guidance for the first quarter further rattled investors. NIO expects revenue to range between RMB12.37 billion ($1.71 billion) and RMB12.86 billion ($1.78 billion), falling well below analysts' consensus estimate of RMB16.73 billion. Vehicle deliveries are projected between 41,000 and 43,000 units, far short of the estimated 65,052 deliveries.
Shares of other Chinese EV makers also tumbled following NIO's report. XPeng Inc. (NYSE:XPEV) dropped 4.4%, Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ:LI) declined 3.0%, and ZEEKR Intelligent Technology Holding Ltd. (NYSE:ZK) shed 2.4% in early trading.
Looking ahead, Li said that 2025 marks a key year for NIO's product lineup. "NIO brand will further solidify its premium positioning by introducing more technology and experience-driven products. ONVO brand, targeting the mainstream mass market, will concentrate on increasing its sales volume and enriching its product portfolio. Firefly's model will be officially launched and begin deliveries in April, serving as a key driver for our future international expansion," Li stated.
The company also emphasized advancements in its intelligent driving technology, with Li noting that NIO has made "breakthroughs in our NIO WorldModel architecture, which will be gradually rolled out to cover all driving scenarios."
