Lordstown Motors (NASDAQ:RIDE) stock is surging Monday on big electric vehicle news. According to CEO Steve Burns, there are two big announcements that investors should watch. So what is the news? And what does it mean for RIDE stock?
If you are unfamiliar with Lordstown Motors, you should know that the electric vehicle company has been red hot since debuting on the Nasdaq Exchange. The company first hit the market at the end of October after completing a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company.
Importantly, Lordstown Motors plans to occupy a different niche in the EV world, and that is where the exciting news today comes in. Its primary product is the Endurance pickup truck, which unlike offerings from Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Ford (NYSE:F), targets the world of commercial and municipal fleets. As the CEO said during a Monday event, the Endurance pickup truck is actually on par with internal combustion engine vehicles. That means it is particularly appealing to fleets looking to electrify.
In fact, this is where the big news for RIDE stock comes in. Lordstown Motors announced on Monday that it has received 50,000 preorders for its Endurance truck. Investors should note that these orders all come from fleets. Especially because this vehicle has yet to debut, it is big news for the company that there is already robust interest. The Endurance should be in production by the end of 2021, so you will want to pay close attention ahead of that debut.
RIDE Stock and U.S. Politics
The second piece of news from Lordstown Motors ties nicely into U.S. politics. Broadly, Wall Street has long expected electric car stocks to benefit from the election of former Vice President Joe Biden. Why? Biden has made clean energy initiatives some of his top priorities heading into 2021. He says he will work to boost consumer adoption of electric vehicles through initiatives like building out charging infrastructure on highways. As it becomes easier and more cost efficient to adopt EVs, commercial fleets will increasingly become electric.
So what exactly is the second piece of news? Well, Lordstown Motors also announced on Monday that it will be opening up shop in California. The company still plans to make its vehicles in Ohio, where it acquired an old General Motors (NYSE:GM) plant. However, there is real political incentive to expand operations in California. This is because Gov. Gavin Newsom and other politicians have set a target to only sell zero-emission vehicles in California by 2035.
With that in mind, Lordstown Motors announced it will open a service center in Irvine, California at the end of the month. According to Burns, this will help it take advantage of the growing market in California.
On the date of publication, Sarah Smith did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
Sarah Smith is a Web Content Producer for InvestorPlace.com.
