Li Auto LI reported a fourth-quarter 2024 earnings per share (EPS) of 52 cents, down from the prior-year quarter’s EPS of 60 cents. Revenues of $6.1 billion, however, increased from $5.9 million in the year-ago quarter, primarily driven by a 20.4% year-over-year increase in vehicle deliveries.

Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Key Q4 Takeaways

Li Auto delivered a total of 158,696 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2024. At the end of 2024, the company had 502 retail stores in 150 cities, 478 servicing centers, authorized body and paint shops operating in 225 cities, and 1,727 supercharging stations in operation equipped with 9,100 charging stalls.

LI’s vehicle sales in the reported quarter amounted to $5.8 billion and increased 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. The vehicle margin was 19.7%, compared with 22.7% in the year-ago quarter. Gross profit for the fourth quarter was $1.2 billion and fell 8.3% year over year. Gross margin was 20.3%, compared to 23.5% in the prior-year quarter.

Operating expenses fell 22% in the reported quarter and stood at $721.6 million. Income from operations amounted to $507.4 million, an increase of 22% on a year-over-year basis. Operating margin was 8.4%, compared to 7.3% in the year-ago quarter. Non-GAAP net income for the quarter amounted to $553.4 million and fell 12% on a year-over-year basis.

Net cash provided by operating activities in the fourth quarter amounted to $1.2 billion, representing a significant decrease of 49.8% from the year-ago quarter. Free cash flow fell 58.6% in the reported quarter and stood at $830.1 million.

As of Dec. 31, 2024, LI had cash and cash equivalents of $9.03 billion, down from $12.86 billion as of Dec. 31, 2023. Long-term borrowings as of Dec. 31, 2024, were $1.12 billion, compared to $246 million as of Dec. 31, 2023.

Q1 2025 Outlook

For the first quarter of 2025, Li Auto expects vehicle deliveries to be between 88,000 and 93,000, suggesting year-over-year growth of 9.5%-15.7%. Total revenues are expected to be between $3.2 billion and $3.4 billion, indicating a year-over-year decrease of 8.7% to 3.5%.

Li Auto’s Zacks Rank and Key Picks

LI currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the auto space are Bridgestone BRDCY, Byd Co. BYDDY and XPeng XPEV. BRDCY, BYDDY and XPEV currently carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BRDCY’s 2025 EPS is currently pegged at $1.72, up by a cent over the past 30 days and suggesting growth of 24.64% on a year-over-year basis.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BYDDY’s 2025 earnings has moved north 4.65% over the past 7 days and suggests year-over-year growth of 38.7%. It is currently pegged at $4.05 per share.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for XPEV’s 2025 loss has been steady at 91 cents per share over the past 30 days and suggests growth of 45.83% on a year-over-year basis.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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