Nikola shares hit record low on plan to raise $100 million

Shares in Nikola hit a record low on Friday after the electric truck maker announced it would sell shares and raise $100 million amid high production costs.

Nikola said late Thursday it would sell about 29.9 million shares in a public offering and 59.4 million shares to hedge fund Antara Capital, an existing holder of the company’s convertible notes.

Wall Street was concerned after Nikola’s asking price of $1.12 represented a 20% discount from Thursday’s last close of $1.40.

Shares of the Phoenix-based EV startup fell as much as 18% to $1.15, its biggest one-day decline since January 2021.

“Despite the $100 million capital injection, management still has work to do to balance the cash burn with its existing cash on hand,” said BTIG analyst Gregory Lewis, downgrading the stock from “buy” to “neutral.”

The company said it had $123 million in cash and $85 million in blocked cash on Tuesday.

Nikola, like other smaller EV firms, has struggled to ramp up production at a time when demand has been stalled due to high borrowing costs due to higher interest rates.

Last year, the company said it would sell shares to raise up to $400 million.

In February, the company said factors affecting demand for its battery-powered trucks were unlikely to abate anytime soon, after delivering less than a sixth of battery-powered trucks in the fourth quarter.

Other EV stocks, including Tesla, Rivian Automotive, Lordstown Motors, and Lucid Group, are all up between 2% and 6%.