【9866 Performance】NIO posted its first profit in the fourth quarter last year, earning over 100 million RMB. This quarter's delivery guidance is at least ten thousand units, with revenue more than doubling. Chip testing successful, in negotiations with companies (Second Edition)

Electric vehicle company NIO (09866)
By Q4 2025, turn profitable with a net profit of 1.22 billion RMB (same below), marking the company’s first quarterly profit, compared to a loss of 7.132 billion RMB in the same period last year; basic earnings per share are 0.05 RMB.
The delivery guidance for the first quarter is 80,000 to 83,000 vehicles, up 90.1% to 97.2% year-on-year; revenue guidance is 24.482 billion to 25.176 billion RMB, up 103.4% to 109.2% year-on-year.

NIO founder, Chairman, and CEO William Li stated that the quarterly profit confirms the company’s core competitiveness in technology, products, and business model. The company has entered its third development phase and is beginning a new cycle of rapid growth.

Challenges in the automotive market in Q1; confident in meeting delivery targets

He admitted that the automotive market in Q1 was very challenging, expecting a slight year-on-year decline overall, but believes sales of new energy vehicles, especially pure electric vehicles, can continue to grow. Although January and February are traditionally slow months for the industry, the company’s deliveries in the first two months remained strong, and he is confident that the quarterly target will be met.

On a non-GAAP basis, excluding stock-based compensation, NIO’s adjusted net profit in Q4 last year was 727 million RMB, compared to an adjusted net loss of 6.622 billion RMB in the same period last year.

The company’s revenue in Q4 last year was 34.65 billion RMB, a 75.86% increase year-on-year and a 59% increase quarter-on-quarter. Vehicle sales totaled 31.606 billion RMB, a significant increase of 80.86% year-on-year and 64.6% quarter-on-quarter. The gross profit margin for vehicles was 18.1%, up 5 percentage points year-on-year and 3.4 percentage points quarter-on-quarter.

William Li pointed out that in the quarter, 124,800 smart electric vehicles were delivered, a 71.7% increase year-on-year; deliveries for NIO, Lixiang, and Firefly brands all hit record highs. The company plans to jointly expand into lower-tier markets this year, covering more prefecture-level cities through integrated SKY stores for the three brands.

The company expects a full-year loss of 15.571 billion RMB in 2025, narrowing from a loss of 22.658 billion RMB in 2024; basic loss per share is 6.85 RMB; revenue is 87.488 billion RMB, up 33.1% year-on-year. Adjusted net loss is 12.414 billion RMB, compared to 20.473 billion RMB in the same period last year.

Launching three new models this year to enrich the high-end vehicle lineup

He announced that the company will launch three new models this year: the flagship SUV ES9 and L80 from Lixiang will debut in Q2; the all-new five-seat ES8 will be launched in Q3, expanding the high-end vehicle lineup.

CFO Qu Yu added that rising costs of materials like lithium and chips will start to impact in Q1, but the existing ES8 order backlog and recovery after the Lunar New Year holiday are promising. The three new models have higher gross margins, which enhances the company’s risk resilience. He believes the gross profit margin for vehicles in Q1 can remain at a level similar to Q4 last year, maintaining quarterly R&D investments of 2 to 2.5 billion RMB.

The second advanced smart chip has successfully completed tape-out and is in production, with negotiations underway with multiple companies

Regarding the company’s chip subsidiary, Shenji, William Li stated that the second advanced smart chip has successfully completed tape-out, using 5nm technology, and is currently in mass production. Due to its high performance and wide applications, including in vehicles and robotics, negotiations are ongoing with several enterprises.

He emphasized that the company will continue to develop and promote high-end, highly competitive chip products, which will support its autonomous driving and embodied intelligence strategies. He also reaffirmed that the company will not develop AI chips.

(Additional content from the earnings conference call in the second edition)