RALEIGH – Losses continue to grow at Vinfast but electric vehicle sales and revenues have increased, the Vietnam-based company says. In a new financial update, the company also says more cash is coming from owner Phạm Nhật Vượng and “key investors” as it pours money into its multi-billion dollar Chatham County factory.
Shares climbed some 4% in pre-market trading after the news broke. Near the close shares traded at $8.26.
VinFast insists that it has the financial resources needed to carry out its expansion plans, including new plants in Indonesia and India. But Rich Smith, a writer for financial news website Motley Fool and has written about VinFast, wonders where VinFast will fund the capital for its expanding vision.
“This is a really important deal for North Carolina. Lots of jobs on the line, lots of investment, but VinFast is not really in great financial health,” Smith told WRAL TechWire in a video interview. “They’ve got about $3 billion in debt, for one thing, less than a hundred million dollars in cash, and they’re burning through roughly $3.3 billion dollars per year at present. That doesn’t leave them a lot of wiggle room with which to be building plants … they’re going to need a lot of money.”
Sales totaled $319.5 million in the July-September quarter, up 3% from the quarter ending June 30.
Its share price has plunged below its $10 initial offering in August, hitting a new low of $8 on Wednesday, as losses have mounted.
VinFast graphic
Before Wall Street markets opened Thursday, VinFast reported that its net quarterly loss for the third quarter ending Sept. 30 jumped 20% from the second quarter to $622.9 million. However, revenues and sales were up.
VinFast said it had $131 million in cash equivalents and added the company “believes that it has sufficient runway to grow in the coming years and will continue to look for opportunities to strengthen its balance sheet.”
Noted Motley Fool’s Smith on the VinFast statement: “Well, they know their company better than I do. But from the numbers I’ve seen, no, it’s a big stretch.”
Earlier this week, VinFast disclosed plans to sell shares from which it aimed to raise more than $1.2 billion. That news led to a big drop in its share price.
VinFast shares dive below $10; company says it will raise $1.2B in stock sales
In an SEC filing, VinFast reported EV sales climbed 5.2% in the third quarter to just over 10,000 from some 9.500 in the second quarter. The company aims to sell 50,000 EVs this year.
To help fund operations, VinFast “expects to receive up to (US$1.2 billion) or more in grants from Vingroup, the Chairman and two key shareholders in the next six months,” it said in the filing.
However, Motley Fool’s Smith cautioned: “They could change their minds” about the funding.
VinFast shares dive 10% after reporting $526.7M quarterly loss
Plans to build additional plants in Indonesia and India continue, VinFast added, but did say $400 million was being cut from spending. It did not specify where cuts would be made.
“This is the first quarter that VinFast was listed on the Nasdaq and complies with reporting and disclosure standards required for foreign companies listed in the U.S.,” said Thuy Le, Global Chief Executive Officer of VinFast, in a statement. We have inspirational and ambitious plans to build a greener future for everyone. The successes achieved in the past two quarters are just the first stepping stone. We have come up with a concrete action plan to deliver on each growth milestone and to accelerate our global expansion.”
