Shares of EV stocks had a great week this week after Luminar Technologies (NASDAQ: LAZR) reported earnings and some competitors fought for market share. But Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) stock was flat for the week, as investors continue to process a likely drop in sales in the first quarter of 2025.
On the plus side, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence, Luminar Technologies is up 66.3% for the week, Lucid Group (NASDAQ: LCID) jumped 15.3%, and EVgo (NASDAQ: EVGO) is up 13.8% as of 3:30 p.m. ET. After a rough start to the year, maybe the EV market is starting to turn.
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The earnings bump
Luminar's huge move was driven by fourth-quarter 2024 earnings, which showed a 45% increase in revenue sequentially to $22.5 million and cash on hand of $232.7 million.
In 2025, revenue is expected to grow by 10% to 20% as LiDAR shipments more than triple for their series production. But the company won't be profitable even on a gross basis and expects to lose $5 million to $10 million on top of operating costs in the mid-to-high $30 million range.
The growth was enough to push shares higher as investors took an optimistic view of the company's future.
Lucid's battle with Tesla
Lucid said this week it will offer $4,000 off for anyone trading in a Tesla vehicle, another push to take market share from the EV leader.
Tesla's sales have struggled in 2025 as customers look to more competitors and eschew the brand that has become less popular in recent months as Elon Musk spends more time in politics.
While this doesn't fundamentally change Lucid's money-losing business, it has helped the sentiment around the stock this week.
Do EVs have tailwinds?
A rise in growth stocks this week has also helped, and EVgo was one of the beneficiaries. A move away from Tesla vehicles, which have access to the Supercharger network, could be good for demand for EVgo charging, but that's projecting a lot of improvement.
The company still lost $127 million from continuing operations in 2024 on $256.8 million in revenue. It's not clear how a charging company will differentiate itself in the market, and if EV sales overall aren't strong, there won't even be demand tailwinds.
Tesla fails to keep up
What's so interesting this week is Tesla's stock trading down slightly while competitors are up. I think we're seeing the market realize Tesla doesn't have a winner-take-all market in EVs or autonomy, and that's creating an opening for other companies. Luminar, for example, is growing with LiDAR included on some new Volvo vehicles, and other autonomous systems are rapidly improving.
But Tesla's misfortune doesn't necessarily mean all these companies will benefit. They haven't proven the ability to generate a profit, and EV manufacturing and component supply has traditionally been a very difficult business.
I see this as a short-term pop for companies that will struggle to make money longterm, and I'm not buying the increase in value until I see improvement on the bottom line.
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Travis Hoium has the following options: long January 2027 $110 puts on Tesla. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
