Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) Given “Buy” Rating at Needham & Company LLC

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by stock analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $23.00 price objective on the electric vehicle automaker’s stock. Needham & Company LLC’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 40.24% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on RIVN. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Rivian Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Rivian Automotive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $16.00 to $23.00 in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Rivian Automotive in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Rivian Automotive from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Rivian Automotive in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rivian Automotive presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.05.

Rivian Automotive Trading Up 2.1%

NASDAQ:RIVN opened at $16.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.33, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Rivian Automotive has a 12 month low of $11.57 and a 12 month high of $22.69. The company has a market cap of $20.35 billion, a PE ratio of -5.34 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.18.

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The electric vehicle automaker reported ($0.54) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.68) by $0.14. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 was down 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.70) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Rivian Automotive will post -3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Rivian Automotive

In other Rivian Automotive news, CEO Robert J. Scaringe sold 21,446 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.17, for a total value of $346,781.82. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,001,138 shares in the company, valued at $16,188,401.46. The trade was a 2.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Claire Mcdonough sold 10,245 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total transaction of $184,410.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 946,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,042,652. The trade was a 1.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 148,888 shares of company stock worth $2,411,276. Corporate insiders own 2.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Rivian Automotive

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RIVN. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Rivian Automotive in the 4th quarter worth $220,323,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Rivian Automotive by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 16,397,496 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock worth $323,195,000 after purchasing an additional 4,012,386 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Rivian Automotive by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,673,512 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock worth $1,198,967,000 after purchasing an additional 2,597,310 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Rivian Automotive by 13.2% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rivian Automotive by 496.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,305,236 shares of the electric vehicle automaker’s stock worth $31,490,000 after buying an additional 1,918,852 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.25% of the company’s stock.

Rivian Automotive News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat modestly: Rivian reported an EPS loss narrower than expectations and revenue slightly above estimates, with revenue up ~11% year‑over‑year — a concrete near-term trigger for buying interest. Rivian Releases First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: R2 production ramp and product story: Management has begun R2 deliveries (employees first) and touted the model as a lower‑cost, higher‑volume opportunity — investors are pricing future growth and margin improvement from R2. Rivian (RIVN) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Georgia plant capacity increased to 300k units (initial phase) — higher scale should lower per‑unit costs if demand materializes, supporting long‑term margin targets. Rivian Announces Optimized Capacity Plan for Georgia Plant
• Neutral Sentiment: DOE loan renegotiation trades size for speed: Rivian trimmed the DOE loan from the previously discussed ~$6.6B to $4.5B but can draw sooner and proceed with a larger initial capacity — this reduces long‑term funding headroom but accelerates near‑term access to funds. Rivian says US loan for Georgia plant set to be smaller but quicker
• Neutral Sentiment: Software and services are starting to show up in results — management highlighted software sales as a growing revenue stream, which could improve margins over time but will take execution. Rivian gets a boost from software sales
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability and cash‑burn remain concerns: Rivian still posts large negative margins and negative ROE; analysts and the call emphasized managing cash burn and demand uncertainty, keeping execution risk high. Rivian’s latest earnings may have been the ‘low point’
• Negative Sentiment: Smaller DOE loan reduces total committed federal funding versus prior expectations, which could matter if capital needs rise or EV demand softens — investors will watch covenant terms and draw schedules. Rivian renegotiates DOE loan down to $4.5 billion

Rivian Automotive Company Profile

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.