Largest Wall Street IPO Since Facebook Completed by Rivian

Rivian, the electric car manufacturer founded by Amazon as well as Ford, made its Wall Street debut on Wednesday, accompanied by a frenzy befitting a market that looks to be defying gravity. At USD US 78 a share, the business priced its stock above the projected range, enabling it to generate a projected USD 11.9 billion. That’s the most money a US company has made since Facebook indexed USD 16 billion in 2012. As per data source Refinitiv, the IPO is the biggest in the world this year and the 12th biggest overall.

Shares opened at USD 106.75, a 37% increase, before completing the day at 29%. Rivian was valued at around USD 86 billion, higher than General Motors, which has a market valuation of USD 85 billion, as well as Ford, which boasts a capitalization of USD 80 billion. Rivian only trails Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz owner Daimler. After a brief period of turbulence, electric car stocks are once again on the rise. Tesla became the first carmaker to be valued at more than USD 1 trillion late last month.

As the major corporations and countries attempt to wean themselves off their reliance on fossil fuels, there is massive market potential. As per the International Energy Agency, by the end of 2020, there will be 10 million electric vehicles on the road. On Wednesday, November 14, 2018, a Rivian R1T was displayed at the company’s headquarters in Plymouth, Michigan. The business, which expects to begin selling vehicles in 2 years, is one of several rising numbers of startups and major automakers attempting to break into the completely electric automobile marketplace and compete with Tesla Inc., the current market leader. If policymakers accomplish aggressive climate commitments, that number might surge to 145 million or more by 2030.

Investors regard Rivian as a likely beneficiary of this development. The firm has an agreement with Amazon to provide 100,000 automobiles by 2025. It may also attempt to secure relationships with other logistics businesses. “Riviera’s order flow and Amazon support are critical confirming signs for investors,” stated Asad Hussain, senior emerging technology analyst at PitchBook. Rivian, on the other hand, is far from developed. It only began manufacturing and shipping automobiles in September. And, it is expected to confront enormous amounts of obstacles in scaling-up production activities in an ecosystem that baffles even the most powerful players. As per Trainer, Rivian has to manufacture well over 1 million automobiles by the end of the decade to maintain its high price. Last year, Tesla, which commenced manufacturing in 2008, shipped just about 500,000 vehicles.