(Reuters) -Lucid Group forecast higher capital expenditure this year and reiterated an annual production forecast below Wall Street targets on Monday, sending its shares down about 7% in extended trading.
The company said it expects capital expenditure of $1.5 billion in 2024, up from $910.6 million last year.
Lucid said it was on track to produce 9,000 cars this year, compared to the 8,428 vehicles it made last year. Analysts, on average, expected the company to make 12,677 units in 2024, according to seven analysts polled by Visible Alpha.
Lucid had cut prices of its flagship Air sedans in February by as much as 10% to spur sales, as customers gravitate to less expensive gasoline-electric hybrid cars due to still-high interest rates.
The company reported first-quarter deliveries above market expectations last month thanks to lower prices, even as Elon Musk-led market leader Tesla reported its first fall in quarterly deliveries in nearly four years.
Revenue for the first quarter was $172.7 million, compared with analysts’ estimate of $156.99 million, according to LSEG data.
Lucid posted a net loss of $684.76 million, narrower than a $779.5 million loss a year earlier.
Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the firm is also set to start production of a more affordable mid-size car in late 2026 to attract a larger customer base.
The sovereign wealth fund has invested billions in Lucid’s success as part of a strategy to diversify the kingdom’s economy beyond oil.
Its affiliate added another $1 billion to the EV maker’s balance sheet, giving the company further liquidity, underscoring a key advantage Lucid has among EV startups in the race for survival.
It ended the first quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $2.17 billion, compared with $1.37 billion in the fourth quarter of last year.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
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