Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Rivian Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ:RIVN)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $15.53, but opened at $16.56. Rivian Automotive shares last traded at $16.1820, with a volume of 25,224,452 shares traded.

More Rivian Automotive News

Here are the key news stories impacting Rivian Automotive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Uber agreed to invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian and to purchase/deploy thousands of R2-based robotaxis (initial target: 10,000 vehicles, expanding to as many as 50,000 through 2031), validating Rivian’s autonomy/product roadmap and creating a multi-year revenue pipeline. Uber to invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian as part of robotaxi deal — Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Uber/Rivian partnership includes initial city deployments (San Francisco, Miami) beginning in 2028 and up to 10,000 robotaxis in the first phase — a clear commercialization path for the R2 and potential recurring fleet orders/services. Uber and Rivian Partner to Deploy up to 50,000 Fully Autonomous Robotaxis — Business Wire
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum around the R2 midsize SUV rollout and other product updates has lifted sentiment; coverage highlights the R2 launch as a near-term growth catalyst that could boost volumes and margins if production ramps smoothly. Rivian Jumps 8%: The R2 SUV Is Here — 247wallst
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment has turned more constructive ahead of the R2 launch (TD Cowen upgraded Rivian to Buy and raised its price target), which supports upward revision risk to estimates and investor confidence. Why TD Cowen Turned Bullish on Rivian — Yahoo Finance
• Neutral Sentiment: Rivian is receiving heavy retail/investor attention and search interest, which can amplify price moves but also increase volatility. Investors Heavily Search Rivian — Zacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Broad market/sector headlines (other EV/autonomy news and regulatory items) may sway short-term trading in RIVN alongside company-specific announcements. Stocks to Watch Today — Yahoo Finance
• Negative Sentiment: Rivian still faces fundamental headwinds: recent quarterly revenue was down year-over-year, the company remains unprofitable with negative margins and analysts model negative EPS for the current year — meaning the stock’s upside depends on execution against production, margin improvement and capital needs.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RIVN. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Rivian Automotive in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Rivian Automotive from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen raised Rivian Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $17.00 to $20.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rivian Automotive in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Rivian Automotive in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and seven have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Rivian Automotive Stock Up 2.6%

The firm has a market cap of $19.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.19 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 2.33. The business’s 50-day moving average is $15.86 and its 200-day moving average is $15.82.

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The electric vehicle automaker reported ($0.66) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.68) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. Rivian Automotive had a negative net margin of 67.68% and a negative return on equity of 65.05%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.70) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Rivian Automotive, Inc. will post -3.2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robert J. Scaringe sold 34,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.80, for a total value of $586,320.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,044,731 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,551,480.80. The trade was a 3.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Claire Mcdonough sold 27,133 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.80, for a total value of $455,834.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 680,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,438,044.80. This trade represents a 3.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 131,833 shares of company stock valued at $2,298,729 in the last quarter. 2.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rivian Automotive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RIVN. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rivian Automotive by 3.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,673,512 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock valued at $1,198,967,000 after buying an additional 2,597,310 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Rivian Automotive by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 20,769,844 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock worth $409,374,000 after buying an additional 2,418,717 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Rivian Automotive by 32.4% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 16,397,496 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock worth $323,195,000 after acquiring an additional 4,012,386 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Rivian Automotive by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,782,865 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock valued at $290,568,000 after acquiring an additional 59,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Rivian Automotive in the 4th quarter valued at about $220,323,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.25% of the company’s stock.

About Rivian Automotive

Rivian Automotive, Inc is an American automotive technology company specializing in the design, development and manufacture of electric vehicles. The company is best known for its all-electric R1 platform, which underpins the R1T pickup truck and R1S sport utility vehicle. In addition to consumer products, Rivian has secured a significant commercial contract to produce electric delivery vans for a leading e-commerce provider, underscoring its capability to serve both retail and fleet customers.

Founded in 2009 by engineer and entrepreneur Robert “RJ” Scaringe, Rivian has grown from a research-focused startup into a publicly traded corporation.