Chinese Nio, Tesla Electric Vehicle Competitor Li Auto Raises $1.1B In US IPO

Li Auto Inc. has raised $1.1 billion in its initial public offering in the United States, Bloomberg reported. 

What Happened

The Chinese electric vehicles maker sold 95 million American depositary shares priced at $11.50 each on Wednesday — above its previously indicated range of $8 to $10. The IPO values Li Auto at about $10 billion on these terms. 

The shares will begin trading Thursday under the symbol "LI" at the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS), UBS Group AG (NYSE: UBS), and China International Capital Corporation Limited (OTC: CNICF) are serving as the underwriters for the offering.

Xiang Li, the CEO of the automaker will reportedly have 21% stake in the company at the conclusion of the IPO, with 72.7% of the total voting power.

The listing is occurring simultaneously with a $380 million sale of shares to investors, including an affliate of the web-based shopping platform Meituan Dianping (OTC: MPNGY) and TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. Hillhouse Capital has also reportedly expressed interest in purchasing shares to the tune of $300 million at the IPO price.

Why It Matters

Li Auto sells SUVs priced between $21,000 and $70,000. It last reported a net loss of $10.89 million for the first quarter, with total revenue of $120.28 million. In the similar quarter last year, the company had posted a net loss of $344 million, an indication that its nearing profitability, Bloomberg noted.

This month, another Chinese EV maker Nio Inc (NYSE: NIO), which held its IPO in September 2018, rallied to a record high and has run up nearly 216% year-till-date.

A recent debutant on the markets, Nikola Corp (NASDAQ: NKLA) skyrocketed after its listing last month, and has clocked gains of 202% YTD. Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) has surged 258% YTD.

Photo by Jengtingchen via Wikimedia.