This a crucial time for car maker Rivian Automotive Inc., as it battles for its place in the competitive electric vehicle market.
Nonetheless, investment research firm New Constructs added Rivian to its list of “zombie” companies on Tuesday, citing cash as a potential problem for the car maker. Other companies on New Constructs’ “zombie” list include Carvana Co. CVNA, -10.83%, Freshpet Inc. FRPT, -15.13%, Peloton Interactive Inc. PTON, -6.88%, Snap Inc. SNAP, -2.40% and Beyond Meat Inc. BYND, -5.75%.
The company had $17 billion in cash and equivalents at the end of its first quarter, which ended in March. This excluded capacity under an asset-based revolving credit facility. The company’s first-quarter loss from operations was $1.579 billion, after a loss of $410 million in the prior year’s quarter. The operating loss contributed to a widening net loss of $1.593 billion, after a net loss of $414 million in the same period last year.
Rivian has already warned that planned revisions to the EV tax credit would put it at a disadvantage to more established competitors, according to the Wall Street Journal.