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Fisker expects to produce between 13,000 and 17,000 electric
vehicles in 2023, down from its prior projection of 20,000 to
23,000 vehicles, the company said after the closing bell on
Monday as it released its third quarter results.
Fisker's shares fell to as low as $3.11, on track for the
biggest daily percentage decline since the company went public
in 2020. The stock is now down about 56% this year and is a
fraction of its all-time intraday high of around $32 reached in
March 2021 during a pandemic boom.
Multiple Wall Street analysts, including from Barclays, Evercore
and Cowen, slashed their price target on Fisker's shares after
its revised production forecast. The median price target of the
14 analysts covering the stock is $6.50, down from $8 a month
ago, and their current recommendation is "hold", according to
LSEG data.
Fisker delivered 1,200 vehicles in October, higher than the
1,097 it delivered in the whole of the third quarter, and it was
on track to deliver even more cars this month, helped by
improvements to its delivery process. Its third quarter revenue
of $71.8 million and net loss of $91 million both missed analyst
estimates, according to LSEG data.
Unlike other EV makers, Fisker has outsourced its vehicle
production to Canadian auto part supplier Magna International.
Fisker had delayed its quarterly results after it flagged issues
relating to internal controls over financial reporting following
the departure of its chief accounting officer, John Finnucan, in
October.
The total value of short interest in Fisker currently stands at
$364 million, representing about 46% of its public float of
shares, according to Ihor Dusaniwsky, a managing director at S3
Partners.
"From our perspective, this raises major questions and is likely
to add insult to injury for one of the market's most
highly-shorted names," CFRA Research analyst Garrett Nelson
wrote in an investor note reacting to Monday's news. Nelson
reiterated his "strong sell" rating and halved his 12-month
price target from $2 to $1.
(Reporting by Chibuike Oguh in New York; additional reporting by
Akash Sriram; in Bengaluru; Editing by Lance Tupper and Susan
Fenton)
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