In the ever-evolving world of electric vehicles (EVs), Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) is the cream of the crop. While Elon Musk's company is the "cool kid on the block," there's plenty of opportunity for other EV manufacturers to grab a piece of the pie.
Lucid Group Inc. (NASDAQ: LCID) is one such company, with Andrew Liveris, former CEO of The Dow Chemical Co. and a Lucid board member, stating in a recent interview, "I'd like to think that there's enough total available market for all of us as internal combustion engines fade away."
While Lucid is far from Tesla in regard to brand recognition, sales and the number of vehicles on the road, this take from Liveris provides insight into what to expect from the EV industry in the years to come.
Will Lucid Make A Dent In Tesla's Market Share?
Despite the rapid expansion of the EV sector, Tesla remains a favorite among consumers, leaving Lucid's high-end vehicles struggling to make an impact.
Industry specialists attribute this to Lucid's steep pricing, particularly when compared with more cost-effective EV alternatives from Tesla, Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), Mercedes-Benz and General Motors (NYSE: GM).
Lucid only has one model on the market - the Lucid Air, which starts at $90,000. The more powerful Lucid Air Sapphire variation, boasting 1,200 horsepower, begins at a price of $249,000.
The high prices have led to modest sales figures for Lucid. The company reported deliveries of 1,404 vehicles in the second quarter, falling short of Wall Street's predicted 1,873. This comes after delivering 1,406 vehicles in the first quarter.
Production also decreased slightly, with 2,173 vehicles produced in the second quarter, compared to 2,314 in the first quarter.
With these numbers, Lucid is far from meeting its annual target of 10,000 EVs. Citi analyst Itay Michaeli believes that while these sales figures do not necessarily reflect broader trends in EV adoption, they will certainly place more emphasis on the release of the lower-priced Gravity, potential new lower-priced Air variants and Lucid's overall branding and marketing strategies.
Financially, Lucid is also a concern to Wall Street because of its hefty spending. The company had a net loss of $779 million in the first quarter, using nearly $1 billion in the process.
By the close of the first quarter, Lucid had approximately $3 billion in cash and equivalents. Nevertheless, the company had to reduce its workforce by 18% in March.
Even though Lucid is light years behind Tesla, the thought that there's enough opportunity for more EV manufacturers remains true. The question is: Which companies will move to the forefront to battle Tesla head-on?
While there are a number of competitors, the answer isn't entirely clear. Alongside several public competitors slowly gaining market share, there are also a number of startups still coming into the market. For example, there are a number of rising companies on the popular startup investing platform, StartEngine. This includes companies like Saleen and even some flying cars as technology continues to advance.