Nio Stock Downgraded Amid Slowing EV Demand and Rising Competition in China

• Analyst Vijay Rakesh has downgraded Nio stock from Buy to Neutral and lowered price target from $15 to $5.50 due to increasing competition and slowing EV market in China.

• Rakesh has reduced 2024/2025 delivery estimates for Nio to 183,000/274,000 vehicles, down from prior 231,000/313,000.

• Nio guided Q1 deliveries down 36% sequentially to 32,000 units; Rakesh sees near-term margin pressure to clear inventory.

• Nio to unveil mass-market "Le Dao" brand in May, but Rakesh thinks it could drag down 20%+ gross margin targets.

• Consensus estimates stand at 204,000/278,000 deliveries for 2024/2025; average analyst price target of $6.99 suggests 42.5% upside for Nio stock.