It took Li only 17 months to reach the milestone of the 50,000th delivery from the first delivery of Li ONE in December 2019, creating the fastest record among all new energy vehicle companies.

Li had 73 retail stores covering 53 cities, and 143 servicing centers and Li Auto-authorized body and paint shops operating in 105 cities as of April 30, 2021.

Li Auto in Q1 2021

Li Auto delivered 4,900 Li ONEs in March 2021, representing a 238.6 % year-over-year increase. This brought deliveries for the first quarter of 2021 to 12,579, up 334.4 % year over year.

As of March 31, 2021, Li Auto had 65 retail stores covering 49 cities, and 135 servicing centers and Li Auto-authorized body and paint shops operating in 98 cities.

In response to robust demand for Li ONEs and in anticipation of new model launches in 2022 and beyond, Li Auto plans to further bolster its direct sales and servicing network.

Li Auto NEV deliveries up 67% in Q4 2020

Li Auto Inc (Lixiang) reported 64.6% growth in total vehicle sales in Q4 2020.

Deliveries of Li ONEs were 14,464 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 67.0% quarter-over-quarter increase and setting a new quarterly record.

With 32,624 vehicles delivered to its customers in 2020, Li ONE became the best-selling new energy SUV of the year in China.

In January 2021, Li Auto delivered 5,379 Li ONEs, representing a 355.8% increase compared to January 2020. As of January 31, 2021, it had 60 retail stores covering 47 cities, in addition to 121 servicing centers and Li Auto-authorized body and paint shops operating in 89 cities.

For the first quarter of 2021, Li expects deliveries of vehicles to be between 10,500 and 11,500 vehicles, representing an increase of 262.6% to 297.1% from the first quarter of 2020.

China electric vehicles (EVs) sales grew 8% to 1.3 million units in 2020

Financial Highlights in Q4 2020

Vehicle sales were RMB4.06 billion (US$621.9 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 64.6% increase from RMB2.46 billion in the third quarter of 2020.

The vehicle margin was 17.1% in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with 19.8% in the third quarter of 2020.

Total revenues were RMB4.15 billion (US$635.5 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 65.2% increase from RMB2.51 billion in the third quarter of 2020.

Gross profit was RMB724.6 million (US$111.0 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 45.9% increase from RMB496.8 million in the third quarter of 2020.

The gross margin was 17.5% in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with 19.8% in the third quarter of 2020.

Loss from operations was RMB78.9 million (US$12.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 56.2% decrease from RMB180.0 million in the third quarter of 2020.

Non-GAAP loss from operations was RMB71.1 million (US$10.9 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 58.0% increase from RMB45.0 million in the third quarter of 2020.

Net income was RMB107.5 million (US$16.5 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared with RMB106.9 million net loss in the third quarter of 2020. Non-GAAP net income was RMB115.4 million (US$17.7 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 621.3% increase from RMB16.0 million in the third quarter of 2020.

Operating cash flow was RMB1.82 billion (US$279.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 95.9% increase from RMB929.8 million in the third quarter of 2020.

Free cash flow was RMB1.60 billion (US$245.1 million) in the fourth quarter of 2020, representing a 113.2% increase from RMB749.9 million in the third quarter of 2020.

Li Auto forecasts total revenues to be between RMB2.94 billion (US$450.6 million) and RMB3.22 billion (US$493.5 million), representing an increase of 245.9% to 278.8% from the first quarter of 2020.

Top 10 predictions for China blockchain market 2021-2025

Li Xiang, the founder, chairman, and CEO, will hold more than 50% of the aggregate voting power immediately upon the completion of this offering and the concurrent private placements.

Certain existing shareholders have agreed to purchase US$380.0 million in Class A ordinary shares from Li Auto, including:

• US$300.0 million by Inspired Elite Investments Limited, an affiliate of Meituan Dianping
• US$30.0 million by Bytedance (HK) Limited, an affiliate of Bytedance Ltd.
• US$30.0 million by Zijin Global Inc., an affiliate of Wang Xing, its director, and
• US$20.0 million by Kevin Sunny Holding Limited.

Positioned as an innovator in China’s new energy vehicle market, Li Auto designs, develops, manufactures, and sells premium smart electric SUVs. It is the first to successfully commercialize extended-range electric vehicles, or EREVs, in China.

Its first model, Li ONE, is a six-seat, large premium electric SUV equipped with a range extension system and cutting-edge smart vehicle solutions. Li Auto started the volume production of Li ONE in November 2019 and had delivered over 10,400 Li ONEs as of June 30, 2020.

Li focuses on the SUV segment within a price range of RMB150,000 (about US$21,000) to RMB500,000 (US$70,000). With their growing consumption power, families in China tend to choose SUVs for daily commutes and weekend family trips.

Its range extension solution also enables them to significantly reduce the bill of materials cost, or BOM cost, which results in more competitive pricing of Li ONE when compared to BEVs and ICE vehicles in a similar class according to Li Auto’s SEC filing.

Li has developed its four-display interactive system, full-coverage in-car voice control system, and advanced driver-assistance system, or ADAS, delivering safe and enjoyable driving and riding experiences to the customers.

Li Auto manufactures in-house and collaborate with industry-leading suppliers to ensure the high quality of its vehicles. It has built its own manufacturing base in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, China, which allows its engineering and manufacturing teams to seamlessly collaborate with each other and streamline the feedback loop for rapid product enhancements and quality improvements.

It plans to launch a full-size premium electric SUV in 2022, which will be equipped with the next-generation EREV powertrain system. In the future, to target a broader consumer base, Li will expand its product lineup by developing new vehicles including mid-size and compact SUV models.

China is both the largest passenger vehicle market and the largest NEV market in the world as measured by sales volume. China’s NEV market is currently skewed towards BEVs, as 81.3% of the NEVs sold in China in 2019 were BEVs, according to the CIC Report.

Li has developed its proprietary EREV technology and applied it to the first model, Li ONE. An EREV is purely electric-driven by its electric motors, but its energy source and power come from both its battery pack and range extension system.

A range extension system generates electricity with a dedicated ICE designed with high fuel consumption efficiency, an electric generator, and a speed reducer to connect them.

The Li ONE electric propulsion system consists of a 140-kilowatt rear-drive electric motor, a 100-kilowatt front-drive electric motor, and a 40.5-kilowatt-hour battery pack, which supports an electrically powered NEDC range of 180 kilometers.

Li ONE’s range extension system consists of a 1.2-liter turbo-charged engine configured and fine-tuned for EREV purposes, a 100-kilowatt electric generator, and a 45-liter fuel tank.

With its integrated powertrain system, Li ONE delivers a total New European Driving Cycle, or NEDC, range of 800 kilometers, acceleration from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 6.5 seconds, and energy efficiency of 6.8 liters per 100 kilometers or 20.2 kilowatt-hours per 100 kilometers, depending on its driving mode.

Li ONE’s energy can be replenished by slow charging, fast charging, and refueling.

Li ONE can operate even when customers have no access to charging infrastructure, thereby completely eliminating range anxiety. To offer the same driving range as BEVs of a similar class, Li ONE requires much less battery capacity.

A smaller battery pack not only is less costly, but also contributes to a more cost-efficient body structure design, which results in less usage of costly aluminum parts for the vehicle body and suspension system. As a result, the BOM cost of Li ONE is close to that of an ICE vehicle and is much lower than that of a BEV of a similar class.

Li Auto revenues for the three months ended June 30, 2020 reached RMB1.9 billion (US$275.0 million), including vehicle sales of RMB1.9 billion (US$271.0 million), representing an increase by 128.6% QoQ from revenues of RMB851.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020, including vehicle sales of RMB841.1 million.

Its vehicle deliveries for Q2 2020 increased by 128.0% to reach 6,604 from 2,896 in Q1 and the average selling price of its vehicles remained consistent during these two periods. As of June 30, 2020, it had over 700 sales and service personnel deployed across 21 retail stores, 18 delivery centers, and 17 servicing centers nationwide.

The gross profit margin increased from 8.0% in Q1 2020 to 13.3% in Q2 2020. It recorded a net loss of RMB75.2 million (US$10.6 million) for Q2, compared with a net loss of RMB77.1 million for Q1.

Li Auto had RMB3.7 billion (US$521.2 million) in cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, time deposits, and short-term investments as of June 30, 2020, compared with RMB3.4 billion as of March 31, 2020.