Rivian surges over 20% on delivery guidance, R2 launch in Q2; CEO says 'key inflection' reached

Core Insights - Rivian's stock experienced a surge of over 20% following the announcement of strong delivery guidance for 2026, with expectations of 62,000 to 67,000 vehicle deliveries, aligning with Wall Street estimates of approximately 63,400 units, indicating optimism around the upcoming R2 vehicle launch in Q2 2024 [1][2]. Delivery Guidance - The company is targeting customer deliveries of the R2 midsize vehicle for the second quarter of 2024, following initial manufacturing validation builds that began in January [2]. - Rivian's delivery guidance for 2026 is set between 62,000 and 67,000 units, which meets Wall Street's expectations [1]. Financial Performance - Rivian reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of $2.063 billion for the year, which was wider than the expected loss of $1.8 billion but within the company's own forecast [6]. - The company achieved a gross profit of $120 million, with a loss of $59 million in the automotive segment and a gain of $179 million from software and services, attributed to its joint venture with Volkswagen [5]. Capital Expenditures and Liquidity - Capital expenditures for the year totaled $1.710 billion, which was below the estimates of $2.05 billion [6]. - At the end of Q4, Rivian had cash and cash equivalents of $6.082 billion, approximately $1 billion less than the previous quarter, and total liquidity of $6.588 million, which is critical for ramping up R2 production [7]. Strategic Outlook - CEO RJ Scaringe emphasized the importance of the R2 program for demonstrating long-term profitability and scaling the business [3]. - Rivian anticipates raising an additional $2 billion in cash and debt from its joint venture with Volkswagen this year, indicating a proactive approach to capital management [7].