Nikola’s quarterly results beat expectations on deliveries of 63 electric semitrucks

Electric heavy truck maker Nikola said that it produced 75 trucks in the third quarter, and delivered 63 to dealers before quarter-end, generating enough revenue to beat Wall Street’s expectations.

The news was included in Nikola’s third-quarter earnings report, released on Thursday morning. Here are the key numbers, compared with Refinitiv consensus estimates:

• Adjusted loss per share: 28 cents vs. 39 cents expected
• Revenue: $24.2 million vs. $22.1 million expected

Shares of Nikola gained 2% in premarket trading.

CEO Michael Lohscheller said that Nikola made “significant advancements” in building out a hydrogen refueling network ahead of the planned launch of its fuel-cell-powered trucks next year. The company said last month that it’s working to have access to up to 300 metric tons of hydrogen gas per day, as it aims to have 60 refueling stations up and running by 2026.

Nikola said it’s on track to complete 17 “beta”, or pre-production, fuel cell trucks by the end of 2022. The company built 6 in the third quarter; those trucks will be used for pilot tests with Walmart and other truck-fleet operators.

Nikola said Thursday that it had about $404 million in cash on hand as of the end of the quarter, down from about $587 million as of June 30. The company said that total included $100.5 million raised via an “at-the-market” stock offering.

Nikola filed a registration statement in August that allows it to raise a total of $400 million via sales of new stock from time to time.

Nikola completed the acquisition of one of its battery-pack suppliers, Romeo Power, in October. Nikola said that bringing Romeo’s operations in-house could save it up to $350 million over the next four years. The truck maker paid $144 million in stock – no cash – for Romeo.

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