With a massive $200 billion market cap, Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) is the clear leader in the electric car race… for now.
Elon Musk is undoubtedly one of the greatest entrepreneurs the world has ever seen. And Tesla’s cars are some of the most high-tech vehicles on the road.
Since the start of 2020, TSLA stock is up 151% (compared to -5% for the S&P 500).
But it’s certainly not the only electric car stock delivering huge gains to investors this year.
Here are three of Tesla’s biggest publicly traded competitors today… (two are American companies).
Workhorse Group Inc: Up 480% Year-to-Date
[finviz ticker=”WKHS”]Workhorse Group Inc. (NASDAQ: WKHS) is an American technology company based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
The company designs, develops, manufactures and sells high-performance pickup trucks and vans with power-train components under the Workhorse chassis brand.
Its powertrain products include E-GEN and E-100.
E-GEN is an electric drive, transmission-free system, which has a gasoline/propane or compressed natural gas (CNG) engine that functions as an auxiliary generator.
E-100, an all-electric, medium-duty truck, is an electric power train. The company generates most of its revenue from sales of any of its E-GEN or E-100 platforms.
On Tuesday, shares of Workhorse Group Inc. jumped nearly 20% after the company announced a $70 million securities purchase agreement from HT Investments MA, LLC.
The $70 million investment is a senior secured convertible note, which will be convertible into common stock.
The notes will bear interest at 4.50% per share and mature on July 1, 2023.
Workhorse expects to use the proceeds from the sale of notes to finance the production of its trucks and for general corporate purposes.
From $3 per share on Jan. 2, to $17.40 today, WKHS is up 480% so far in 2020. And with a market cap of only $1.2 billion, it could easily double or triple again before the year is over…
NIO Inc. – ADR: Up 106% YTD
[finviz ticker=”NIO”]Headquartered in Shanghai, NIO Inc. (NYSE: NIO) is China’s largest electric automobile manufacturer. That’s why it trades as an American depositary receipt (ADR) on the New York Stock Exchange
NIO operates in China’s premium electric vehicle market and was founded in 2014 by William Li, the Chairman of Bitauto and NextEV.
The company designs, manufactures, and sells smart and connected premium electric vehicles, driving innovations in next-generation technologies in connectivity, autonomous driving, and artificial intelligence.
NIO sells vehicles through its own sales network, including NIO Houses, NIO Spaces, and their mobile application.
Its SUV model include the ES8, ES6, and EC6, which range in price from $50,000 to $100,000 (similar to Tesla’s offerings).
The majority of NIO’s revenue is earned from selling SUVs, but the company also sells its EP9 supercar $1.5 million apiece.
NIO builds electric supercars to compete in the FIA Formula E Championship – the first single-seat, all-electric racing series.
NIO’s early investors include Chinese giants like Tencent, Baidu, Lenovo, and even the American venture capital firm Sequoia.
So far in 2020, NIO stock has risen significantly along with TSLA. It’s up 106% and could easily continue higher throughout the rest of this year and into 2021.
My price target: $30 per share.
Nikola Corp: Up 575% YTD
[finviz ticker=”NKLA”]Nikola Corp. (NASDAQ: NKLA) is an American hybrid truck design and manufacturing company based in Pheonix, Arizona, where it also has its research and development operations.
The company was founded in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2014 and like Tesla, was also named after inventor Nikola Tesla.
Nikola Corp. manufacturers battery-electric and hydrogen-electric semitrucks (18-wheelers) – the Nikola One, Two, and Tre.
Raquel Baranow / CC BY-SA
Nikola also creates and sells electric vehicle drivetrains, vehicle components, energy storage systems, and hydrogen fueling station infrastructure.
What makes NKLA different from TSLA is the company’s hydrogen-electric fuel cell technology, which help its vehicles generate more power and range than lithium battery engines.
14,000 Nikola Two semitrucks with hydrogen-electric engines have already been reserved, which the company believes could result in $10 billion in revenue once fulfilled.
And on Monday, NKLA announced that the Nikola Badger, an electric pickup truck, became available for preorder with a $5,000 deposit (the stock popped 11% on the news).
The Nikola Badger pickup truck will come in an all-electric model with a 300-mile range and start at $60,000. But even more impressive is the company’s hydrogen fuel cell model that’s expected to go twice as far for $80,000.
From $10 per share on January 2, to $67.50 today – this has simply been one of the best performing stocks on the market in 2020.
And with its electric hydrogen fuel cell technology, Nikola could give Tesla a serious run for its money over the next decade.
