• Rivian reported better-than-expected sales results for Q2 2023.
Rivian hasn't had it easy since the start of production of its first model, the R1T pickup truck. In recent months, however, things have been looking up for the fledgling EV maker as it tries to carve out a place for itself on the market.
Today, we learn that the automaker has surpassed Wall Street's expectations in terms of vehicle deliveries, thanks to stable customer demand. As a result, the company's shares jumped 10 percent in early morning trading.
Rivian, which is backed by Amazon, has struggled to get off to a good start due to the supply chain crisis, but also because one of its main rivals, Tesla, has been making significant price cuts in recent months. These and other challenges have put brake on the new company’s performance since it launched its first EV.
In February, Rivian announced it planned to lay off 6 percent of its workforce, while holding to its target of producing 50,000 vehicles in 2023. Last month, the company's CFO, Claire McDonough, said she believed demand would remain stable throughout the year.
Another factor helping the company is that, as its vehicles hit the road, more and more potential customers see them and are curious to find out more. In this sense, interest in the brand can only increase.
As for the better-than-expected results, in the second quarter of the year, deliveries of Rivian models jumped by 59 percent to 12,640 units, according to 15 analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha. Initial estimates were for 11,000 vehicles.
Rivian produced 13,992 vehicles at its Normal, Illinois, production site during the same period, 4,597 more than in the first quarter. If we add the second-quarter results to the rule of three, we arrive at more than 50,000 units produced over the year.