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Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI, HK: 2015) shares tumbled on Monday after the Chinese EV maker reported weaker-than-expected earnings and issued a soft revenue forecast. The stock fell as much as 7% to HK$105.0 in Hong Kong, underperforming the Hang Seng Index’s 1% gain. This followed a 4.3% decline in its U.S. shares on Friday.
The company, competing with Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) in China, projected Q1 revenue between 23.4 billion yuan and 24.7 billion yuan ($3.2 billion–$3.4 billion), missing market estimates of 33.5 billion yuan. This outlook overshadowed its record-high Q4 revenue of 44.3 billion yuan. Earnings per share dropped to 10.04 yuan from the previous year due to a fierce price war in China’s EV market.
Li Auto’s disappointing guidance triggered analyst downgrades. Macquarie cut its rating to Neutral from Outperform, citing concerns over profit growth amid rising competition. Nomura also downgraded the stock to Neutral, noting increased pressure from upcoming rival models.
Despite strong sales growth, Li Auto’s margins have been squeezed by aggressive pricing strategies among Chinese automakers. The company plans to launch two new all-electric SUVs, the Li i8 and Li i6, in 2025. However, industry conditions may improve as Beijing considers new subsidies to stimulate EV demand.
Meanwhile, shares of competitors BYD (HK: 1211), NIO (HK: 9866), and Xpeng (HK: 9868) gained up to 3.7% on Monday, benefiting from Li Auto’s struggles.
Investors remain cautious about the Chinese EV sector’s profitability, but potential government support could provide a boost in the coming months.
