While Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Nio (NYSE:NIO) has long been in the spotlight, its upcoming financial disclosure — scheduled for March 5 — presents an unusually intense backdrop. After a string of poor performances by its EV peers, the fourth-quarter 2023 earnings report will provide a broader view of the sector. NIO stock moved up more than 1.5% on Friday afternoon.
To provide background, Nio reported delivery numbers for February, which came out to 8,132 vehicles. This tally brings its year-to-date haul to 18,187 units, per TipRanks. Cumulatively, the EV manufacturer delivered 467,781 vehicles as of Feb. 29. Nevertheless, last month’s figure clashed unfavorably against the 12,157 vehicles delivered in the year-ago period.
Notably, the underperformance is not unique to NIO stock. Rival XPeng (NYSE:XPEV) saw its delivery stats decline for the month to 4,545 units from 6,010 units a year ago, according to TipRanks.
Earnings in Focus for NIO Stock
Looking ahead, the spotlight focuses on Nio’s upcoming Q4 earnings report, which will be released prior to Tuesday’s opening bell. Per Zacks Equity Research, analysts anticipate a loss per share of 51 cents. Notably, this estimate widened by a penny in the past 60 days. In addition, they’re targeting revenue of $2.29 billion.
The investment research firm notes that in Q4, Nio delivered 50,045 vehicles. That was better than what the company guided for, which was a range of 47,000 to 49,000 vehicles. Deliveries jumped 25% on a year-over-year basis, surpassing the estimate of 47,713 units.
Nevertheless, Zacks also notes that the company’s high cost of goods sold will likely have weighed on margins. Further, it reports that the company “has been bearing the brunt of high operating expenses for the past several quarters and the trend is expected to have continued amid increasing personnel costs in research and development functions, personnel costs related to sales functions and a rise in sales and marketing activities.”
Taken together, Zacks does not conclusively believe an earnings beat will be in store for NIO stock.
Why It Matters
Broadly, the EV sector is under pressure due to a reduction in demand. Earlier this year, Reuters reported that while automakers and suppliers are betting big on the potential future of mobility, a near-term global slowdown is causing pain. This includes bankruptcies, scrapped initial public offerings and production cuts.
NIO stock has taken the brunt of the damage, losing about 31% since the start of the year. However, other notable players have not fared much better. Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) looks awful at the moment, losing almost 46% year-to-date. And Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) — which sparked a sector price war — is below parity by 18%.
On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
