Amazon-backed Rivian shares jump in IPO debut

The electric vehicle maker trades under the ticker symbol RIVN

Electric vehicle maker Rivian, backed by Amazon and favored by Jeff Bezos, made its highly-anticipated debut Wednesday on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol RIVN. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
RIVN RIVIAN AUTOMOTIVE INC. 14.41 -0.24 -1.65%

Shares gained over 29% closing at $100.73 after the company priced its initial public offering, which sold 153 million shares at $78 apiece to raise approximately $11.9 billion. In addition, Rivian has granted underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to 22.95 million additional shares at the IPO price. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
GM GENERAL MOTORS CO. 46.71 -0.24 -0.51%
F FORD MOTOR CO. 12.87 0.00 0.00%
AMZN AMAZON.COM INC. 199.64 +2.05 +1.04%

Rivian is valued at more than $90 billion, above the market values of automotive giants General Motors and Ford Motor Company. Amazon holds a 22.4% stake in Rivian, while Ford holds a 14.4% stake.

RIVIAN PRICES SHARES AT $78 IN HIGHLY ANTICIPATED IPO

Rivian, which was founded in 2009 and currently describes itself as a "developmental stage company", has not generated any material revenue to date. The company said in its amended IPO prospectus that it will lose up to $1.28 billion in the third quarter and that revenue will range from zero to $1 million.

Rivian Blue Origin

Jeff Bezos drove an electric Rivian pickup to the Blue Origin landing pad. (Blue Origin)

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Rivian recently began production and deliveries of its R1T passenger pickup truck in September, which starts at $67,500 and has an EPA-estimated 314 miles of range on a single charge. As of Sept. 30, Rivian produced 11 R1Ts and delivered 12 R1Ts and, as of Oct. 31, produced 180 R1Ts and delivered 156 R1Ts. 

"Nearly all of these vehicles were delivered to Rivian employees, and we expect to ramp deliveries to third-party customers as we increase our production rate," the company said.

Rivian recently began production and deliveries of its R1T passenger pickup truck in September, which starts at $67,500 and has an EPA-estimated 314 miles of range on a single charge.  (Rivian)

Rivian is also developing a three-row, seven-passenger SUV, the R1S, which starts at $70,000, has an EPA-estimated 316 miles of range on a single charge and is expected to begin deliveries in December following completion of ongoing vehicle validation and all required testing.  

Rivian is developing a three-row, seven-passenger SUV, the R1S, which starts at $70,000, has an EPA-estimated 316 miles of range on a single charge and is expected to begin deliveries in December following completion of ongoing vehicle validation and (Rivian)

Rivian said it has accepted preorders for approximately 55,400 R1 vehicles in the United States and Canada, which it expects to fill by the end of 2023. The company plans to produce approximately 1,200 R1Ts and 25 R1Ss and deliver approximately 1,000 R1Ts and 15 R1Ss by the end of 2021. 

Amazon has ordered 100,000 of Rivian's upcoming electric delivery vans, which will be delivered by 2030. (Rivian)

In addition, Amazon has ordered 100,000 of Rivian's upcoming electric delivery vans, which will be delivered by 2030. According to internal testing, the 700-cubic-foot EDV has 201 miles of range on a single charge. By the end of 2021, Rivian intends to produce and deliver approximately 10 EDVs.

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Rivian's factory in Normal, Illinois, is currently equipped to produce up to 150,000 vehicles annually. Rivian is aiming to produce approximately 1,310 R1 vehicles and 1,710 commercial vehicles per week, which equates to 65,000 R1 vehicles and 85,000 commercial vehicles, including EDVs, annually. 

"We expect to reach a vehicle production rate, which, when annualized, would result in us using 100% of the facility’s current installed capacity of up to 150,000 vehicles by late 2023," Rivian wrote in the filing. "Further, we believe that we will be able to increase the annual production capacity of the Normal Factory up to 200,000 vehicles in 2023 as we introduce additional R1 platform variants and expand the facility. Over the next couple of years, we expect to establish additional domestic production capacity in order to support our product development roadmap and fulfill future anticipated demand."