Nikola says electric-truck deliveries to fall short of plans

Nikola Corp. said deliveries of its battery-electric trucks will fall short of expectations due to worsening economic conditions, dragging down shares even as quarterly sales and earnings beat Wall Street’s estimates.

The company will hand over fewer than the 300 planned for this year, with deliveries trending below expectations in the final three months, Chief Financial Officer Kim Brady said Thursday on a conference call with analysts. Next year is also shaping up worse than expected, though Nikola declined to offer a specific forecast.

Customers are hesitant “to make significant capital investment in the necessary charging infrastructure,” Brady said. “We anticipate these headwinds will continue to be a significant limiting factor in the customer uptake rate for the Tre BEVs, especially for the remainder of this year and likely through 2023.”

Nikola’s shares fell 3.3% at 10:40 a.m. in New York, reversing an earlier gain of as much as 12%. The stock was down 67% this year through Wednesday’s close.

The Phoenix-based company sees itself as a leader in clean-energy commercial vehicles but has had a roller-coaster history getting its vehicles to market. Its efforts to develop plug-in electric trucks has been hampered by a global breakdown in supply chains and shortages of key parts, as well an managerial turmoil. Brady had warned analysts last quarter that Nikola would “more likely” come in near the bottom of a previously guided range of 300 to 500 vehicles delivered for the year. 

The latest issues tarnished results from a period in which Nikola built 75 of its Tre BEV trucks, up from 50 in the prior quarter, according to a statement Thursday. It delivered 63 to dealers in the third quarter. 

Nikola posted revenue of $24.2 million, above analysts’ expectations for $22.3 million. Nikola also recorded a narrower-than-expected loss of 28 cents per share.

Separately, Nikola said in a regulatory filing that President Michael Lohscheller has replaced Mark Russell as chief executive officer. The move, effective Thursday, comes about two months earlier than planned.

“During the third quarter we continued to produce and deliver Nikola Tre BEVs to dealers and customers,” Lohscheller said in the statement.

Fuel-Cell Trucks

Longer term, Nikola is focused on building hydrogen-powered fuel-cell trucks, but those models are still in development. Nikola also is working on building out fueling infrastructure.

After going public via a special purpose acquisition company in June 2020, Nikola’s market value eclipsed that of Ford Motor Co. despite having no revenue. But the stock came back to Earth after founder Trevor Milton was accused by a short seller of lying about the company’s progress and technology.

Last month, Milton was found guilty of defrauding investors in a New York federal court in a trial which stemmed from issues raised in the short seller’s report.