Shares of Blink Charging Co. surged on Friday as the provider of electric-vehicle charging equipment and services expressed optimism about the impact of recent developments related to Tesla Inc.’s Supercharger unit.
Blink Chief Executive Brendan Jones sought to address concerns about the demand for electric vehicles, emphasising that any decline in demand was primarily specific to Tesla.
Blink’s stock experienced a 2.8% rally in afternoon trading on Friday following the company’s report of a first-quarter loss that was narrower than expected. Additionally, their revenue surpassed forecasts. Meanwhile, the stock of Tesla, ticker symbol TSLA, experienced a decline of 2.2%.
During the company’s post-earnings call with analysts late Thursday, Jones acknowledged a slight decrease in the number of EVs sold during the first quarter compared to the fourth quarter.
According to an AlphaSense transcript, Jones pointed out that the decline in sales can be attributed mainly to Tesla volumes. Interestingly, the other nine leading EV manufacturers, excluding Tesla, reported impressive growth of over 50% in the first quarter of 2024.
According to the speaker, there are nine other electric vehicle manufacturers, including Hyundai, Kia, Ford, Mercedes, Cadillac, and BMW.
During the call, analyst Chris Pierce inquired about the impact of recent developments on Blink’s business. Specifically, he wanted to understand the implications of the changes at Tesla, including the closure of the Supercharger unit and the reported layoffs of about 500 employees. Jones responded: “[I] think it’s worth noting that we’ve received a significant amount of interest since the announcement, and we’re well-prepared to capitalise on these opportunities once they become concrete.” So, indeed, it has generated some positive energy for us.
After Jones made his comment, Tesla CEO Elon Musk stepped in to address the speculation surrounding the Supercharger business. Musk assured everyone that Tesla had big plans in store, with a commitment to invest over $500 million in the creation of thousands of new EV chargers.
Blink’s first-quarter net losses decreased to $17.2 million, or 17 cents a share, compared to $29.8 million, or 53 cents a share, in the same period last year. The per-share loss of 23 cents exceeded the FactSet consensus.
The total revenue experienced a significant increase of 73.3%, reaching $37.6 million, surpassing the FactSet consensus of $34.6 million.
The company reported a significant increase in product sales, reaching $27.5 million. This growth was attributed to the strong demand for charging equipment and services. Additionally, service revenue saw a substantial rise of 72% to $8.2 million, driven by the increased utilisation of chargers both in the U.S. and internationally.
The company restated its revenue target for the full year 2024, projecting it to be between $165 million and $175 million. Additionally, the company expressed confidence in achieving profitability on an adjusted Ebitda basis by December 2024. Ebitda is a measure of a company’s profitability that excludes interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation.
Blink’s stock has experienced a 13.9% decline so far this year, while Tesla shares have seen a significant drop of 32.3%. In the meantime, the S&P 500 has experienced a 9.5% increase so far this year.
