Lucid Gains After EV Maker Secures $1.5 Billion Lifeline
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Lucid Group will get a cash infusion of as much as $1.5 billion from an affiliate of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, sending the electric car maker’s shares up as it readies its first sport utility vehicle.
Ayar Third Investment Co. agreed to make the investments by purchasing $750 million of convertible preferred stock and providing a $750 million unsecured loan, Lucid said late Aug. 5. The fresh funding comes as the carmaker works to overcome production hurdles and copes with slowing EV demand.
Lucid shares traded up as much as 13% after the markets opened Aug. 6 in New York, the biggest gain in more than three weeks. The stock was down about 29% for the year through close Aug. 5.
The Newark, Calif.-based EV maker already received $1 billion from Ayar in March. A few weeks later, Lucid announced it would cut about 6% of its workforce by the end of the third quarter. The news followed a tough 2023 in which the company struggled to boost output, cut staff and saw a shakeup at the top of its management ranks.
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Lucid said it intends to use its new cash infusion for general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures and working capital. The money is expected to fund the manufacturer through the fourth quarter of next year.
The company also reported second-quarter revenue of $200.6 million, beating the average Wall Street estimate of $185.8 million. However, it lost 29 cents a share on an adjusted basis during the period, worse than the 27 cents analysts anticipated.
Lucid was among a handful of EV makers that listed in the U.S. the past few years, only to have trouble replicating the success of market leader Tesla Inc. The manufacturer offers only one vehicle, the Lucid Air sedan, which starts at $69,900. It also plans to launch an SUV, the Lucid Gravity, later this year.
“The new round of funding sees us right through a key phase of not just the launch of Gravity but the ramp up,” CEO Peter Rawlinson said.
Lucid unveiled the Gravity in November and said it expected the SUV to cost less than $80,000. Rawlinson posted a video last week showing him driving the first pre-production Lucid Gravity off the line at the company’s Arizona manufacturing facility.
The company announced in July that it had delivered 2,394 vehicles and produced 2,110 during its second quarter, beating expectations. On Aug. 5, Lucid reaffirmed its forecast that it expects to make 9,000 vehicles this year.
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