Rivian is now the biggest U.S. company with no sales

Add another milestone to Rivian’s blistering and surprising run as a new stock: It’s now the biggest U.S. company by market value with no revenue.

The electric-truck maker, backed by Amazon and Ford, has unseated Lucid, an electric vehicle peer with no sales to its name, at the top of the list.

Rivian’s shares have soared 67% from their initial public offering price of $78 (R1,194) on Wednesday.

It’s just about a 25% gain away from overtaking Volkswagen, one of the world’s largest car producers, in market value.

Meanwhile, Lucid has seen its stock price advance 339% this year. It went public via a merger with a blank-check company in July.

“(It’s) seriously mind boggling when it hasn’t even earned any discernible revenue yet,” said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, discussing Rivian’s valuation.

Electric vehicles have been attracting investor interest since mid-2020, when governments, policymakers, and corporations announced plans to invest in the industry amid a growing urgency to tackle climate change.

Recent strong results from industry leader Tesla and a big push from car-rental company Hertz into EVs have supercharged all stocks in the space.

Rivian’s rally for the third straight day vaulted its market value above Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler on Friday, after racing past Ford and General Motors’ market valuations in the previous two days.