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Lucid Q1 Earnings Call: Bumpy Road Ahead?

Lucid reported its financial results for Q1 2023 on Monday and the outlook for the US EV company was a mixed bag to say the least.

Lucid reported its financial results for Q1 2023 on Monday and the outlook for the US EV company was a mixed bag to say the least with a revenue of $149 million representing a 159% increase year-over-year against a $780 million loss in the preceding three months.

Lucid's representatives were keen to point out that this means progress, though the internet at large was less optimistic about the manufacturer's outlook.

"We are on track to produce over 10,000 vehicles in 2023, with company-wide initiatives ongoing that will enable Lucid to pivot to higher volumes as market conditions allow. We continue to grow our brand awareness and I'm proud to say that the Lucid Air was recently awarded a number of prestigious industry accolades. We will unveil our Gravity SUV later this year ahead of its launch in 2024 and we cannot wait for everyone to experience it. The Lucid Air redefined the luxury sedan category and we believe the continuing advancements of our in-house technology position our Gravity SUV to do the same in the SUV category – game-changing range, driving experience, charging speed, voluminous interior space, and an unrivaled combination of luxury and performance." - Peter Rawlinson, Lucid CEO and CTO

That production estimate comes at the low end of Lucid's previous guidance which predicted 10,000-14,000 vehicles to be built in 2023, and comes amid an apparent demand drought for the brand's flagship luxury sedan. Lucid is currently undertaking more aggressive marketing initiatives to get the Lucid Air in front of more eyes with a cross-country tour among other efforts.

A pair of Lucid Airs are pictured parked on the lawn at a concours event.Related Story: Lucid Test Drive Poaching Angers Tesla Fans

Staying the Course
During the call, CFO Sherry House said that Lucid's "mission and optimism are unchanged," with everyone in Newark and Casa Grande "committed to an environmentally sustainable future – designing, building, and delivering the best EVs on the market." Lucid currently has an approximate liquidity of $4.1 billion which should be enough to see it into Q2 of 2024, by which point the Lucid Gravity will hopefully have arrived to boost sales and deliver the company closer to profitability.

One significant omission from the numbers given during the call was the number of reservations that Lucid currently has on its books. This number had decreased in previous calls, taking LCID's value lower by 9% with it, so the fact that it wasn't included this time around will do nothing to improve investor confidence levels.

Lucid built 2314 Air sedans in Q1 and delivered 1406 units to customers, though test drives reportedly nearly doubled during Q1 as opposed to Q4 2022.

Related Story: SEC's Lucid Investigation Closed, No Wrongdoing

Images by Lucid Motors licensed by CC BY 4.0.

James Walker is an Automotive Journalist at Torque News focusing on Lucid Motors. If it's got wheels he's interested, and he's looking forward to seeing what kind of cars the EV revolution brings us. Whether it's fast, slow, new, or old, James wants to have a look around it and share it in print and on video, ideally with some twisty roads involved. You can connect with James on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.