Lucid Falls After Maker of Luxury EVs Misses Profit Estimates

(Bloomberg) — Lucid Group Inc. shares fell in late trading after third-quarter sales and earnings trailed estimates and reservations declined for the company’s luxury electric vehicles.

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The automaker’s loss was 40 cents a share, according to a statement Tuesday, wider than analysts’ average estimate of a 31-cent loss. Revenue was $195.5 million, missing the $204 million prediction in a Bloomberg survey.

The Newark, California-based company’s shares declined 13% as of 5:23 p.m. in New York, after losing 65% of its value this year through Tuesday’s close.

Supply-chain snags and logistics problems marred the beginning of Lucid’s year, leading the startup to revise down its production target twice. Lucid reaffirmed the lowered goal Tuesday, saying it still expects to be able to make 6,000 to 7,000 vehicles by year’s end. Reservations for Lucid’s Air sedan dropped from 37,000 in the second quarter to 34,000, and the company announced it would start taking preorders for its delayed SUV in 2023.

Lucid exited the third quarter with $3.85 billion in cash, equivalents and investments, down from $4.6 billion at the end of the prior quarter.

The company also said Tuesday that it struck a deal to sell as much as $600 million in shares through Bofa Securities Inc., Barclays Capital Inc. and Citigroup Global Markets Holdings Inc., and as much as $915 million in shares to an affiliate of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Saudi Arabia already owns a majority of Lucid’s shares through its wealth fund.

(Updates with additional details beginning in first paragraph)

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