Ideal of Chinese electric vehicle manufacturerAuto reported a fourth-quarter net profit of 107.5 million yuan ($16.5 million), saying its steady growth in the Chinese market offset high manufacturing costs.
Li Auto Inc. is the first of China's three upstart electric cars to report results. NIO Inc.The car will release its financial results on March 1st and XPeng Inc. on March 8th. In addition to the income data, investors will also focus on gross margins and statements on capital demand, chip shortages and overall demand for electric vehicles.
On average, the four analysts expected a loss of 125 million yuan for Li Auto Inc. 's quarterly results. The company lost 107 million in the third quarter.
Revenue in the fourth quarter rose 65% to 4.15 billion yuan, while car deliveries rose 67% to 14464 vehicles, Beijing-based Li Auto Inc. said in a statement. The annual income is 9.46 billion yuan, far more than 284 million in 2019.
Gross margin was 17.5%, down from 19.8% in the third quarter.
Li Auto Inc. sells only one model: the ideal ONE. This is an "extended range" electric SUV that uses an electric motor and is equipped with a gasoline engine. Total sales in 2020 were 32624. Delivery in January increased by 356 per cent over the same period last year to 5379 vehicles. But it is still lower than NIO Inc. 's 7225.
From NIO Inc. Automobile, XPeng Inc. and industry leader Tesla, Inc.The competition will bring a challenging year. Car price cuts and the release of electric models by large traditional carmakers have added to the pressure, while the Chinese Lunar New year is quieter than usual because of the COVID-19 epidemic, with travel restrictions slowing car production and delivery.
According to an internal memo confirmed by Li Auto Inc., the company expects the Chinese electric car market to exceed 8 million by 2025, giving it a market share of about 20 per cent. That seems ambitious-although China sold a record number of electric vehicles in 2020, there were only 1.3 million, according to Canalys. While the Chinese government has always supported the development of electric vehicles, changes in policies and consumer subsidies have disrupted the market in recent years, and carmakers have been trying to build sales momentum.
Li Auto Inc. closed up 6.3 per cent on Wednesday. The stock has risen nearly 150 per cent over the past 12 months.