Reporter Li Xing
On the evening of November 20th, NIO released its third quarter 2024 performance report, which showed that in the third quarter of this year, NIO achieved a revenue of approximately 18.674 billion yuan, a month on month increase of 7% and a year-on-year decrease of 2.1%; After adjustment, the net loss was approximately 4.413 billion yuan, a decrease of 2.7% compared to the previous period and an increase of 11.6% year-on-year; Free cash flow turned positive, and cash reserves increased to 42.2 billion yuan.
NIO Financial Report
Looking ahead to the fourth quarter of 2024, NIO has once again provided guidance for achieving historic highs in both delivery and revenue: the delivery guidance for the fourth quarter is 72000 to 75000 vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 43.9% to 49.9%; The revenue guidance is 19.68 billion to 20.38 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15% to 19.2%.
Li Bin, founder, chairman, and CEO of NIO, stated during the third quarter 2024 earnings conference call that NIO will enter a new product cycle starting next year, with new product deliveries from Ledao and Firefly brands, and the company will enter a faster growth phase. The company's goal is to achieve 100% sales growth by 2025 and profitability by 2026, "said Li Bin.
The gross profit margin of the entire vehicle reached 13.1% in the third quarter
Official data shows that NIO delivered 61900 vehicles in the third quarter of this year, setting a new historical high. In the first nine months of this year, NIO had a market share of over 40% in the high-end pure electric market with an average transaction price of over 300000 yuan, "said Li Bin. The Ledao L60 began delivery at the end of September this year, and production capacity will rapidly climb in the coming months. It is expected that the total delivery volume of the company will reach a new high in the fourth quarter of this year.
NIO Financial Report
However, a reporter from the Daily Economic News found that although NIO's delivery volume reached a historic high in the third quarter, its car sales were not ideal.
According to the financial report, NIO's automobile sales in the third quarter of 2024 were approximately 16.698 billion yuan, a decrease of 4.1% compared to the third quarter of 2023 and an increase of 6.5% compared to the second quarter of 2024. Automobile sales have slightly decreased compared to the third quarter of 2023, mainly due to changes in product mix resulting in a decrease in average selling price, but partially offset by an increase in delivery volume. NIO explained that automobile sales have increased compared to the second quarter of 2024, mainly due to an increase in delivery volume.
According to Qu Yu, the Chief Financial Officer of NIO, through continuous cost optimization, NIO's gross profit margin for vehicles increased to 13.1% in the third quarter of 2024. The overall gross profit margin of the vehicle has increased compared to the third quarter of 2023, mainly due to a decrease in unit material costs, partially offset by a decrease in average selling prices caused by changes in product mix. The overall gross profit margin of the vehicle has increased compared to the second quarter of 2024, mainly due to a decrease in unit material costs, "explained NIO.
Qu Yu stated that NIO will continue to optimize product costs, increase the proportion of high gross profit models in the market, and improve the overall gross profit margin of the vehicle. In the fourth quarter of this year, the company is confident that the gross profit margin of NIO brand vehicles can be increased to 15%. Our goal is to gradually increase the gross profit margin of NIO brand from 15% to 20% by 2025 through continuous optimization, "said Qu Yu.
In terms of research and development, NIO continues to maintain a high investment pace. According to the financial report, NIO invested approximately 3.32 billion yuan in research and development expenses in the third quarter of this year, an increase of 9.2% compared to the third quarter of 2023 and an increase of 3.1% compared to the second quarter of 2024. The R&D expenses have increased compared to the third quarter of 2023, mainly due to the increase in personnel costs for the R&D function, "explained NIO.
Sales are expected to double by 2025
Regarding the production capacity delivery of its second brand, Li Bin stated that currently, Ledao's production capacity is in a normal upward trend, and it is expected to deliver 10000 vehicles in December this year and 20000 vehicles in March next year. In 2025, Ledao will launch two more family SUVs. One will be a mid to large SUV with 6-7 seats, and the other will be a large five seat SUV, equivalent to the ideal L8 and L7. Li Bin said that compared to the ideal L7 and L8, Ledao's two new SUVs will have good price competitiveness.
Not only that, Li Bin also revealed that in 2025, NIO's "Electric County Connection" will focus on strengthening Ledao's channel and network construction, helping Ledao's sales growth in 2025.
In addition, during the performance conference call, Li Bin also announced that NIO's third brand has been officially named "Firefly Firefly", and the first product has the same name as the brand. The Firefly brand and its first product will both be released and unveiled at NIO Day 2024 on December 21st. The positioning of Firefly in NIO is equivalent to the MINI brand of BMW Group, "Li Bin revealed. The first model under the Firefly brand will be delivered in the first half of 2025.
According to Li Bin, relying on NIO's 10 years of deep cultivation in the high-end pure electric market, Firefly will exceed user expectations in terms of design, safety, space, intelligence, and energy efficiency, and usher in the intelligent electric era of global high-end small cars.
Starting next year, with the delivery of products from the Ledao and Firefly brands, we will accelerate our entry into more global markets. Li Bin revealed that in terms of global layout, the Ledao and Firefly brands will undertake larger markets in the future. Next, Ledao and Firefly brands will enter more countries and markets.
In addition to two new brands, Li Bin also revealed that NIO's products will gradually switch to the NT3 platform in 2025, with the first model being the ET9. At present, the intelligent electric administrative flagship ET9 has entered the final preparation stage before mass production, "said Li Bin.
In Li Bin's opinion, using two to three brands to face different users is a relatively successful strategy. Overall, the entire group will enter a new high-speed growth cycle next year. We are very confident in achieving 100% sales growth, "said Li Bin.
Qu Yu also stated that from next year, NIO's three brands will usher in a strong product cycle, driving the company's sales into a faster growth stage. With sales doubling next year, overall operations will continue to achieve positive growth, and losses are expected to narrow in 2025. The goal is to achieve profitability by 2026, "said Qu Yu.
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