Wedbush Sees Rivian Finally Starting To Turn The Corner; Bumps Up Price Target By 33%

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives maintained Rivian Automotive Inc RIVN with an Outperform and raised the price target from $30 to $40.

After brutal production woes since its IPO, the Rivian story is finally starting to turn the corner, with positive supply news heading into the second half of 2023. 

Rivian announced production of 4,401 units and deliveries at 4,467 units, above Street consensus after the malaise seen over the past nine months. 

Rivian management reiterated that the company is on track to meet the guidance of 25,000 vehicles produced in 2022, a crucial barometer with the reiteration of FY22 production guidance. 

He believes Rivian has begun gaining some Street credibility as they navigate this complex supply chain environment incrementally better, ultimately improving the story's financial profile into 2023. 

The demand story for Rivian trucks remains firm as the reservation/order book is impressive looking out into 2023. Production is starting to ramp after the doldrums at its factory in Normal, IL.

The performance last quarter, coupled with the 2Q delivery numbers, reflects that Rivian (and the management team) is finally starting to get their act together and live up to some of the massive hype for the company coming out of the gates.

He saw 2023 would likely be a major inflection year for the EV pickup market with the Ford Motor Co F F-150 Lightning, General Motors Co GM Silverado, and the Cybertruck on the near-term map battling for consumers. 

He saw Rivian primed to capture the massive influx of current and future EV demand, capitalizing on a unique global TAM from a core engineering and design perspective along with the Amazon.com Inc AMZN commercial relationship. 

Price Action: RIVN shares traded lower by 0.04% at $31.61 on the last check Friday.

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