Tesla, an electric vehicle manufacturer, had just more than $2 billion in market capitalization after its initial two trading days in 2010.
After his second day on the stock market, R.J. Scaringe (CEO of Rivian EV manufacturer) is worth this much.
Rivian shares rose 57% within the first two days of listing on the Nasdaq. This gave the company a market capitalization of nearly $105 billion. Based on Thursday's closing stock prices of $122.99, Scaringe owns 17.6 millions shares. This puts Scaringe's Rivian shareholding at $2.2 billion.
Scaringe, 38 years old, attracted investors to his vision of an EV company that would sell to consumers who are interested in going electric and to companies trying to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. Scaringe stated in his letter to shareholders that he stopped trying to build an efficient sports car and instead focused on how to maximize impact.
Scaringe stated that "We started thinking about the truck, SUV and crossover segments because they offered a huge opportunity for us to show how a clean, technology-focused vehicle can eliminate long-accepted compromises." We wanted to build our brand by offering a unique combination of efficiency, off-road capability and functional utility that was unmatched in the market.
According to the company, it has placed 55,400 orders for its R1S SUV/R1T pickup truck as well as a contract with Amazon to build 100,000 electric vans by 2030. Investors are already placing Rivian at a higher valuation than Ford and General Motors because they know Rivian will assemble and deliver the vehicles profitably. The company has not reported revenue and is expecting less than $1million in sales for Q3.
However, the current surge in EV stocks is not driven by business fundamentals.
The EV market has become a haven for speculators since Tesla's 2010 tepid IPO. With Tesla as the catalyst, it has transformed into a safe haven. Tesla went public on a split-adjusted share price of $3.40 per share. It closed Thursday at $1063.51 per share and is one of five U.S. businesses valued at more than $1 trillion.
