Li Auto (LI) has reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter of 2021, as both earnings and revenues beat the Street’s estimate. Shares of the China-based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer rose 7.7% in the early trading session on Monday.
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The company reported a net loss per share of RMB0.01 ($0.00), narrower than analysts’ expectations of a loss of RMB0.19. The figure compares favorably with a net loss of RMB0.26 per ADS in the same quarter last year.
Total revenues surged 209.7% year-over-year to RMB7.78 billion ($1.21 billion) from RMB2.51 billion, surpassing the Street’s expectations of RMB7.3 billion. The upside can be attributed to a 199.7% rise in vehicle sales.
Deliveries of Li ONEs stood at 25,116 vehicles during the third quarter, up 190% year-over-year. (See Li Auto stock charts on TipRanks)
Research and development expenses increased 165.6% to RMB888.5 million ($137.9 million) from RMB334.4 million in the year-ago quarter. General and administrative costs rose 198.5% to RMB1.02 billion ($158.5 million).
The Founder, Chairman and CEO of Li Auto, Xiang Li, said, “In light of our strong order intake and users’ rising acceptance of smart electric vehicles, we remain as enthusiastic as ever about our growth prospects… Meanwhile, we will further increase our production capacity through the addition of the Beijing manufacturing base, and consistently expand our sales and servicing network to prepare our business growth.”
Outlook
For the fourth quarter of 2021, the company expects to post revenues between RMB8.82 billion ($1.37 billion) and RMB9.41 billion ($1.46 billion), representing year-over-year growth of 112.7% to 126.9%. It further anticipates vehicle deliveries to be in the range of 30,000 to 32,000, up 107.4% to 121.2% from the year-ago quarter.
Wall Street’s Take
Overall, the Street is bullish on the stock and has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 6 Buys and 1 Hold. The average Li Auto price target of $42.84 implies upside potential of about 31.1% from current levels.
Smart Score
Furthermore, Li Auto scores a “Perfect 10” from TipRanks’ Smart Score rating system, indicating that the stock has strong potential to outperform market expectations.
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