Guangzhou-based Xpeng is one of several Chinese electric car companies that’s started to expand overseas.
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Chinese electric-vehicle maker Xpeng saw its shares in Hong Kong surge over 10% Thursday following upbeat earnings and stronger-than-expected revenue forecast for the second quarter.
Its shares soared as much as 10.2% to 85.5 Hong Kong dollars ($10.86), and were last trading 7% higher, taking year-to-date gains to 78%.
The Guangzhou-based carmaker’s first-quarter revenue more than doubled from a year earlier, driven by robust sales.
Xpeng said it delivered 94,008 vehicles in the first three months this year, more than four times the sales volume a year earlier.
That improved top line helped narrow its net loss for the first quarter to 664 million yuan, compared to 1.37 billion yuan a year ago, and lifted its gross margin to 15.6% for the quarter from 12.9% a year earlier.
The company is a key player in China’s hypercompetitive EV market, but has struggled to turn a profit amid rising competition and sluggish domestic demand.
Analysts widely expect Xpeng will likely turn profitable in the fourth quarter this year, thanks to its strong sales momentum and pipeline of new models.
The company has launched several new products, including the mass-market brand MONA last August and a renewed flagship model X9, featuring advanced autonomous driving system.
The automaker said it aims to begin mass production of vehicles equipped with Level 3 autonomous driving features in China by year-end, a significant upgrade from the currently more common Level 2 systems.
For the second quarter, Xpeng said it anticipates a revenue of 17.5 billion yuan to 18.7 billion yuan, compared with consensus forecast of 17.2 billion yuan, according to data compiled by LSEG.
It expects to deliver 102,000 and 108,000 of electric cars in the second quarter — a jump of around 237.7% to 257.5% from a year earlier.
That optimistic earning forecast lifted investor sentiment, sending Xpeng’s U.S.-listed shares 13% higher to close at $22.25, powering a year-to-date rally of over 88%. Still, it is well off its record of more than $72 apiece hit in November 2020, according to LSEG data.
Rival BYD has seen shares in Hong Kong surge over 74% so far this year, Li Auto has risen more than 22%, while NIO has lost over 11%.
— CNBC’s Arjun Kharpal contributed to this story.
