Lucid (LCID) stock crashes as EV maker loses key executive

California-based EV maker Lucid (LCID) faces a new hurdle with CFO Sherry House leaving the company. Lucid stock is down almost 10% Tuesday following the departure of its key financial executive.

Lucid stock falls as chief financial executive resigns

Lucid revealed in a press release Monday that House is resigning from her position, effective immediately.

The financial leader is leaving to “pursue other opportunities.” House will remain in an advisory role through the end of the year to help in the transition.

Before joining Lucid in May 2021, House worked at Waymo for three years and nine months, according to her LinkedIn.

Lucid’s VP of accounting, Gagan Dhingra, will step in as interim CFO while the company searches for a replacement. CEO Peter Rawlinson thanked House for her role during critical company moments like launching the Lucid Air and scaling production.

The news comes as Lucid faces a crucial stretch in scaling production. Lucid has struggled to ramp output this year after seeing numbers peak in the fourth quarter of last year.

Lucid cut its 2023 production target again after deliveries fell in Q3. The EV maker delivered 1,456 EVs in Q3. Although that’s up slightly from Q2 (1,404), it’s still well below its peak of 1,932 at the end of 2022.

Production is also down significantly from last year. Lucid built 1,550 vehicles in the third quarter, down 50% from its peak of nearly 3,500 in Q4 2022.

Lucid’s latest setback

With output falling, Lucid cut its 2023 production goal to 8,000 – 8,500 vehicles. That’s over 40% lower than the 14,000 higher-end target from last year.

Meanwhile, Lucid has built 6,037 Air electric sedans through September while delivering 4,267 models to customers.

The EV maker is also facing widening losses. Lucid lost about $433,000 on every vehicle it shipped out in Q3.

Lucid’s losses are piling up, reaching over $2.17 billion through the first nine months of the year. Despite this, the startup had $5.45 billion in liquidity at the end of Q3, which House said the company expects will “lead us to our next major milestone, Gravity production, and beyond, into 2025.”

Lucid revealed the Gravity, its second EV and first electric SUV, last month. The three-row electric SUV features a 440-mile range, an upscale interior, and a powerful compact powertrain.

The new electric SUV will begin rolling out late next year, with starting prices under $80,000. Lucid says its Gravity will redefine the electric SUV.

Lucid stock is down nearly 10% in Tuesday’s trading session following the news. Share prices have fallen almost 50% over the past 12 months and are down over 90% from their all-time highs in 2021.

The Nasdaq announced it will drop Lucid from the Nasdaq 100 stock index at the end of the week as part of its annual reshuffle amid the struggles.

Electrek’s Take

Lucid has struggled to ramp production and deliveries all year. Tesla’s drastic price cuts this year are adding pressure on the startup.

To remain competitive, Lucid slashed prices by up to $12,400 this summer to spark demand. Lucid’s fourth-quarter and full-year numbers will give us a better idea of how the startup is performing.

The startup hopes lower prices and the Gravity electric SUV can help turn things around. Lucid also began Air Sapphire deliveries, a high-performance Tesla Model S Plaid rival.