Stock Ratings

Edison Yu's team believes that if EV industry investor sentiment stabilizes in the coming months, Xpeng's stock will recover quickly due to its clean growth pathway and existing leadership position in ADAS/AD technology in the second half of the year.

Xpeng closed down 4.61 percent to $25.46 on Monday amid a broad market sell-off, down about 58 percent from its recent high of $60.04 in late January.

Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu's team raises Nio's gross margin forecast by 250bps to 20.3 percent, leading to a higher EPS estimate.

JP Morgan reiterated its Overweight rating on Nio and its $70 price target, about 80 percent above the stock's Thursday close of $38.99.

CLSA analyst Soobin Park initiated coverage on Nio with a Buy rating and a $50 price target, implying a 26 percent upside for the stock from Thursday's close of $39.57.

The Mizuho Securities analyst believes NlO deliveries rose 423 percent year-over-year as it ramped up its ES8 and EC6 SUVs, and that both vehicles could remain strong this year.

JP Morgan's delivery estimates for Nio in the first quarter were 20,000, which the bank said: "our current forecast remains achievable and potentially conservative."

In the long term, Xpeng management expects the price of XPILOT to increase in the future, beyond the current RMB 20,000 yuan.

CICC cut its price target on Nio by 27% to $62 from the previous $85, saying this is due to the pullback in Tesla as a "valuation anchor" for EV makers. It also lowered its price target on Li Auto by 12.5% to $35 from $40.

By Thursday's close, Nio's $46.03 stock price had essentially regained the $46.11 level it opened at on March 2, forming a perfect V-shape.