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Shares of Rivian recorded their best day ever after the EV maker reported 2024 production and deliveries that were in line with the company’s previously announced expectations.
Rivian stock closed Friday at $16.49 per share, up 24.5%. That is the largest daily percentage increase since the electric vehicle maker went public in November 2021.
Shares of Rivian declined 43% last year as the company burned through cash and missed its production targets.

Rivian electric vehicles (EV) are parked at the Rivian Venice Hub on November 13, 2024 in Venice, California. 
Mario Tama | Getty Images

Shares of Rivian Automotive recorded their best day ever after the electric vehicle maker reported 2024 production and deliveries that were in line with its previously announced expectations.
Rivian stock closed Friday at $16.49 per share, up 24.5% during the session. That is the largest daily percentage increase for the stock since the EV maker went public in November 2021, according to FactSet. The prior record was 23.2%, set in June.

Rivian on Friday said it produced 49,476 vehicles in 2024, including 12,727 trucks and vans during the fourth quarter, and delivered 51,579 vehicles, including 14,183 models during the last three months of the year.
The automaker’s fourth-quarter deliveries topped estimates of 13,472, according to 15 analysts polled by Visible Alpha, according to Reuters.
Rivian in October lowered its 2024 production target to a range of 47,000 to 49,000 vehicles – down from 57,000 units. The company had expected deliveries of between 50,500 and 52,000 vehicles.
The company in October said the adjusted target was because of a “production disruption due to a shortage of a shared component” for its current vehicles — the R1T pickup, R1S SUV and a commercial delivery van.
The company on Friday said the previously discussed shortage “is no longer a constraint on Rivian’s production.”

Rivian’s stock declined 43% last year as the company burned through cash and missed its production targets.
Rivian is scheduled to announce its fourth-quarter financial results on Feb. 20.

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Both General Motors and Ford Motor on Friday reported their best annual U.S. new vehicle sales since 2019.
GM reported 2024 sales of more than 2.7 million vehicles, up 4.3% from a year earlier.
Ford reported 2024 sales of 2.08 million vehicles, up from just under 2 million in 2023.

Attendees view the 2025 Ford Bronco Stroppe Special Edition during the AutoMobility LA 2024 auto show at the Los Angeles Convention Center on November 21, 2024.
Robyn Beck | Afp | Getty Images

DETROIT – Sales of new vehicles in the U.S. continued to rise last year, rebounding from historical lows caused by the coronavirus pandemic and supply chain shortages during the past four years.
American legacy automakers General Motors and Ford Motor on Friday both reported their best annual U.S. new vehicle sales since 2019, led by growth of electrified vehicles such as all-electric and hybrid models.

Those results are in line with industrywide expectations for automakers. Market research firms expected U.S. automakers to report total sales of nearly 16 million vehicles in 2024, which would mark the industry’s best year since selling roughly 17 million units in 2019.
“We got to just under 16 million units, it looks like, for 2024, with strengthening in the last quarter,” said Stephanie Brinley, associate director of AutoIntelligence at S&P Global Mobility. “Given some of the affordability and inflationary headwinds, it’s probably a decent year … It’s moving in the direction we need to move.”
Auto sales in 2025 are expected to continue to grow but still come in shy of 2019 volumes. S&P Global Mobility and Edmunds expect sales of roughly 16.2 million vehicles this year.
Several other automakers on Friday such as Toyota Motor, Hyundai Motor and Honda Motor reported single-digit annual sales increases, also largely in line with industry expectations.
GM remained the country’s top-selling automaker, followed by Toyota and then Ford. Hyundai, including its sibling Kia, ranked fourth, followed by Honda and then Chrysler parent Stellantis, which has experienced significant sales declines in recent years.

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GM, Ford and Stellantis stocks

Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, reported annual sales of roughly 1.3 million vehicles in 2024 – marking its worst year since 2010, when its predecessor was still recovering from bankruptcy.

Sales results

GM reported 2024 sales of more than 2.7 million vehicles, up 4.3% from a year earlier. The automaker sold 2.9 million units in 2019.
“The driving force for our business is new vehicles with great design and performance across our portfolio, helping our dealers satisfy more customers. We’re carrying significant momentum into 2025,” Rory Harvey, GM president of global markets, said in a release.
GM said sales were driven by increases in all four of its U.S. brands as well as a roughly 50% rise in sales of electric vehicles to more than 114,400 units.
Despite the notable jump in EV sales, the vehicles only made up 4.2% of the automaker’s overall sales. GM estimated it achieved a 12% EV market share in the U.S. during the fourth quarter.
It was a similar trend at Ford, which reported a notable increase in sales of its “electrified” vehicles, including EVs and hybrids.
Ford on Friday reported 2024 sales of 2.08 million vehicles, up from just under 2 million in 2023. In 2019, the automaker sold 2.42 million vehicles in the U.S. For the fourth quarter, Ford reported an 8.8% year-over-year increase in sales to 530,660 vehicles sold.
That automaker said full-year sales of its vehicles with traditional internal combustion engines increased 0.2% compared with 2023, while sales of electrified vehicles rose 38.3% year over year.
Electrified vehicles, including hybrids and EVs, represented 13.7% of Ford’s total annual sales.
Here are other U.S. sales reported Friday compared with 2023 totals:

Stellantis reported a 15% decline in U.S. sales to roughly 1.3 million vehicles sold. The biggest sales drop among the company’s brands was a 29% decline for Dodge, followed by 19% declines for Ram Trucks and Alfa Romeo. Its popular Jeep brand saw sales decline by 9%.
Toyota reported a 3.7% uptick in sales for 2024, despite a 7.1% decline in December. The company sold more than 2.3 million vehicles last year.
Honda announced an 8.8% increase in sales last year to 1.4 million vehicles, including a 9.9% rise during the last month of the year.
Hyundai brand’s sales increased roughly 4% during 2024 to a record of more than 836,800 vehicles.
Kia, a sibling company to Hyundai, also reported record U.S. sales of 796,488 vehicles in 2024, up 1.8% from its prior record set in 2023.

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DraftKings is testing out a subscription service for select customers in New York, as it tries to offset the state’s high gaming taxes.
Subscribers will get a boost in odds on all winning parlays.
DraftKings is the first sportsbook to offer a subscription service.

Sports betting company DraftKings’ logo is displayed on a smartphone screen.
Budrul Chukrut | Lightrocket | Getty Images

DraftKings is upping the ante.
The sportsbook is testing out a new subscription service called DraftKings Sportsbook+ designed to provide paying customers a boost in odds.

The $20 per month subscription service launched quietly on Dec. 28 for select customers in New York and will offer participants up to a 100% profit boost on winning parlays. For example, a two-leg parlay would receive a 10% boost, a six-leg parlay would receive a 50% boost, and an 11-leg parlay would get the full 100% boost. The maximum bet eligible is $25.
New York offers a strong testing ground for DraftKings as one of the top-performing markets for online gaming.
The company could also be looking to help offset taxes in the Empire State. Sports wagering taxes in New York stand at 51%, tied with New Hampshire for the highest rate.
In August, DraftKings announced it was reversing course after announcing it would add a small tax to customers in states that have multiple operators and a tax rate of over 20%.
Others in the industry will be watching closely. DraftKings appears to be the first U.S. operator to launch a subscription service. Parlays, where bettors are wagering on more than one event at a time, are a profitable and growing area for sportsbooks.

In a statement, DraftKings said the subscription service was designed to offer customers an enhanced fan experience by “creating more excitement and value to our extensive parlay offering.”
The news was first reported by Sportico.
The company did not say how many users have signed up so far.
DraftKings is offering the first month free, and then the subscription will kick in.
While the subscription is currently only available in New York, DraftKings said it will consider whether to offer the service in other states.

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The U.S. surgeon general issued a new advisory warning about the link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk.
Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy called for additions to labels warning of the connection between alcohol use and cancer risk.
Alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., behind only tobacco and obesity, and increases the risk for at least seven types of cancer, according to the advisory.

A customer drinks a glass of beer at the Saxton Pub in Austin, Texas, April 5, 2023.
Brandon Bell | Getty Images

The U.S. surgeon general issued a new advisory warning Friday about the link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk, and pushed for policy changes to help reduce the number of alcohol-related cancers.
U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy said there is a “well-established” link between drinking alcohol and at least seven types of cancer, including breast, colorectum, esophagus and liver. For cancers including breast, mouth and throat cancers, increased risk may start around one or fewer drinks per day, according to his office.

As part of the advisory, the surgeon general called for policy changes that could help reduce alcohol-related cancer. He pushed for alcohol labels to be more visible and include a warning about the increased risk of cancer, to reassess recommended limits for alcohol consumption based on the latest research and expand education to increase general awareness that alcohol consumption increases cancer risk.
The efforts outlined in the advisory are similar to those already implemented to lessen tobacco use, including a slew of mandated warnings on packaging and in stores.
The surgeon general advised people to consider the link between alcohol consumption and greater cancer risk when deciding whether to drink or how much to have.
Alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., behind only tobacco and obesity, according to the advisory.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States — greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S. — yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk,” Murthy said in a press release.

Shares of alcohol manufacturers including Molson-Coors and Anheuser-Busch initially dipped more than 1% following the advisory.
According to the advisory, 72% of U.S. adults said they had one or more drinks per week between 2019 and 2020, but less than half of all adults are aware of the link between drinking and cancer risk.
Worldwide, 741,300 cases of cancer were attributed to alcohol consumption in 2020, according to the surgeon general.
On average, alcohol-related cancer deaths shorten the lives of those who die by 15 years.
Younger Americans are already increasingly stepping away from alcohol, and many are leaning into nonalcoholic alternatives. About two-thirds of adults ages 18 to 34 say alcohol consumption negatively affects health, versus less than 40% of people ages 35 to 54, and 55 and over, according to a Gallup survey released in August. More

The Department of Transportation fined JetBlue Airways $2 million for repeated delays on four routes, crediting it $1 million for past and future passenger compensation.
The DOT said the fine was the first of its kind.
JetBlue said its on-time rate has improved and urged the incoming administration to invest in improving air traffic control.

JetBlue Airways aircraft are pictured at departure gates at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on June 15, 2013.
Fred Prouser | Reuters

The Department of Transportation fined JetBlue Airways $2 million for “chronically delayed flights,” the first penalty of its kind, the DOT said Friday.
JetBlue operated four routes that were delayed at least 145 times from June 2022 through November 2023, the DOT said. Those were between JetBlue’s home hub at John F. Kennedy International Airport and Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina; between Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida, and JFK, and between Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Windsor Locks, Connecticut, according to the DOT.

“Today’s action puts the entire airline industry on notice that we expect their flight schedules to reflect reality,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a news release.

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JetBlue was responsible for more than 70% of the disruptions on the four routes, the DOT said. The airline failed to adjust the flight times “to avoid illegal unrealistic scheduling,” the department added.
The DOT considers a flight chronically delayed if it is flown at least 10 times a month and arrives over 30 minutes late more than half the time. It said it has ongoing investigations into other airlines for unrealistic flight schedules.
JetBlue said in a statement the government has to do more to improve staffing of air traffic controllers and modernize the system, echoing calls from executives at Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and other major carriers.
“While we’ve reached a settlement to resolve this matter regarding four flights in 2022 and 2023, we believe accountability for reliable air travel equally lies with the U.S. government, which operates our nation’s air traffic control system,” JetBlue said in its statement. “We believe the U.S. should have the safest, most efficient, and advanced air traffic control system in the world, and we urge the incoming administration to prioritize modernizing outdated ATC technology and addressing chronic air traffic controller staffing shortages to reduce ATC delays that affect millions of air travelers each year.”

Based in New York, JetBlue operates in some of the world’s most congested airspace. From January through September 2024, JetBlue ranked ninth out of 10 U.S. airlines in on-time arrivals with 71.3% of flights arriving on time, an improvement over 64.9% in the year-earlier period, according to a monthly DOT tally.
The DOT said it would credit JetBlue $1 million of the fine for goodwill compensation already paid to passengers during the investigation’s time frame as well as for compensation that is payable within a year of the order with vouchers to affected passengers paid at at least $75.

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Hindenburg Research disclosed a short position in Carvana on Thursday, claiming the company’s recent turnaround is a “mirage” that is being propped up by unstable loans and accounting manipulation.
The report centers on Carvana’s practice of loan sales as well as the business relationship between CEO Ernie Garcia III and his father, Ernest Garcia II, who is Carvana’s largest shareholder.
Carvana in a statement called Hindenburg’s report “intentionally misleading and inaccurate” without going into specific details.

CFOTO | Future Publishing | Getty Images

Noted short seller Hindenburg Research disclosed a bet against Carvana on Thursday, claiming the online used-car retailer’s recent turnaround is a “mirage” that is being propped up by unstable loans and accounting manipulation.
The report, called “Carvana: A Father-Son Accounting Grift For The Ages,” centers on Carvana’s practice of loan sales as well as the business relationship between CEO Ernie Garcia III and his father, Ernest Garcia II, who is Carvana’s largest shareholder.

Shares of Carvana closed Thursday at $199.56, down 1.9% – marking its first close under $200 per share since October. The stock increased nearly 400% in 2023, as the company improved results and reduced costs as part of a turnaround plan led by Ernie Garcia III.
Carvana in a statement called Hindenburg’s report “intentionally misleading and inaccurate” without going into specific details.
“In the 7 years since our IPO, Carvana has been one of the most heavily researched public companies. The arguments in today’s report are intentionally misleading and inaccurate and have already been made numerous times by other short sellers seeking to benefit from a decline in our stock price,” Carvana said in an emailed statement Thursday afternoon. “We plan to stay focused on executing our plan for another great year in 2025.”
Hindenburg says it uncovered $800 million in loan sales “to a suspected undisclosed related party, along with details on how accounting manipulation and lax underwriting have fueled temporary reported income growth — all while insiders cash out billions in stock.”
Hindenburg also alleges that an increase in borrower extensions at Carvana is being enabled by the company’s loan servicer, an affiliate of private car dealership DriveTime, which is run by Garcia II. The “company seems to be avoiding reporting higher delinquencies by granting loan extensions instead,” according to Hindenburg.

CNBC could not immediately verify the claims in the Hindenburg report.
This is not the first time the Garcia family and its control of the company have been a target of some investors, including lawsuits in recent years alleging the Garcias run a “pump-and-dump” scheme to enrich themselves.
Carvana went public in 2017 after spinning off from DriveTime.
DriveTime was formerly a bankrupt rental-car business known as Ugly Duckling that Garcia II, who pled guilty to bank fraud in 1990 in connection to Charles Keating’s Lincoln Savings and Loan scandal, grew into a dealership network.
Most notably, Carvana still relies on the company for servicing and collections on automotive vehicle financing, and the two companies share revenues generated by the loans. The businesses also, at times, sell vehicles to each other, and Carvana leases several facilities from DriveTime in addition to profit-sharing agreements.

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FOREIGNERS ARE taking good American jobs. Some of the very best, frankly. Five of America’s eight trillion-dollar technology giants are run by people born in other countries. Jensen Huang of Nvidia hails from Taiwan; Hock Tan of Broadcom, another chip titan, comes from Malaysia. Microsoft and Alphabet, Google’s corporate parent, are run by two Indians, Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai. Elon Musk, boss of Tesla, is South African. More

Managers are better equipped than ever to make good decisions. They are more aware that human judgment is fallible. They have oodles of data about their customers and products. They can use artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse, summarise and synthesise information with unprecedented speed. But as the pendulum swings inexorably away from gut instinct and towards data-based decisions, firms need to be alive to a different set of dangers. More