Topline
Electric vehicle maker Rivian, which some investors hope could be the next Tesla, went public at a valuation of $90 billion on Wednesday, with shares surging 29% as they commenced trading in America’s biggest initial public offering since Facebook in 2012.
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe.
Key Facts
Rivian’s stock, trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker RIVN, opened at around $106 per share, a 36% surge from its initial IPO price of $78 per share.
Within minutes of trading, the stock rose as high as $116 per share, a more than 50% jump from its starting IPO price—before paring back gains and finishing the day at just over $100 per share.
While the company’s pricing gave it an initial valuation of $66.5 billion, the stock’s surge means that the electric vehicle company is now worth more than $90 billion.
Rivian raised $11.9 billion from a 153 million share offering in its public market debut—making it the largest IPO haul since 2012, when Facebook went public and raised $16 billion.
The electric vehicle maker is backed by Amazon, which has a 20% stake, and Ford, which owns 12% of the company.
Some investors are betting that Rivan could be the next Tesla: Rivian was the first company to release a fully electric pickup truck, the R1T, with plans to launch its electric SUV, the R1S, this December.
Beyond electric pickup trucks and SUVs, Rivian is also expanding into commercial vehicles: Amazon is its biggest customer and has already ordered 100,000 of Rivian’s electric delivery vans.
What To Watch For:
Rivian’s whopping market valuation comes despite its lack of revenue—though it’s not the first electric vehicle maker to attract massive valuations under similar financial circumstances. Rivian expects to lose up to $1.28 billion this quarter, with revenue of no more than $1 million during that time period. The company said in filings, however, that it has a backlog of over 50,000 orders for its R1T and R1S vehicles, both of which have starting prices near $70,000.
Big Number: $1.7 Billion
That’s how much Rivian founder RJ Scaringe’s stake in the company is worth after the stock’s first day of trading.
Surprising Fact:
With Rivian’s opening valuation of over $90 billion, the company is already worth more than the likes of legacy auto industry giants such as Ford ($79 billion) and General Motors ($85 billion).
Key Background:
Rivian, which had over 6,200 employees at the end of June, said in its prospectus that it expects its factory in Illinois to produce up to 150,000 vehicles per year. Founded in 2009, the company was last valued by investors in an early 2021 funding round at $27.6 billion, according to Pitchbook.