Nio reports strong third-quarter revenue as it gears up for a big year-end production push

Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio on Thursday reported a loss of $577.9 million for the third quarter, significantly wider than a year ago, despite strong revenue following a 29% increase in vehicle sales.

Here are the key numbers from Nio’s third-quarter earnings report.

• Revenue: $1.83 billion, up 32.6% from the third quarter of 2021.
• Adjusted loss per share: 30 cents, versus 6 cents per share in the year-ago period.
• Cash at quarter end: $7.2 billion, down from $8.1 billion as of June 30.

Shares of the company rose 1.6% in premarket trading Thursday.

Nio said on Oct. 1 that it delivered 31,607 vehicles in the third quarter, up 29% from the third quarter of 2021 and a record for the company.

Nio’s gross margin was 13.3%, slightly improved versus the 13% margin it reported in the second quarter, but down from 20.3% a year ago. Nio said the year-over-year margin decline was due to lower sales of regulatory credits, higher costs that have squeezed margins on its vehicles, and higher spending on its charging and service networks.

CEO William Bin Li said in a statement that the company has seen strong interest in its new ET5 sedan, which he expects “will support a substantial acceleration of our overall revenue growth in the fourth quarter of 2022.” The ET5, the company’s second sedan, began shipping in September.

With the ET5 now available, Nio is working to increase production and shorten customer waiting times, Li said. Nio said that investors should expect it to deliver 43,000 and 48,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter, generating total revenue between RMB17,368 million ($2.4 billion) and RMB19,225 million ($2.7 billion).