Nio Stock Hits Four-Month High After First Quarterly Profit and Wall Street Upgrades

TLDR

• Nio stock hit a four-month high, up nearly 6% on Friday and around 20% since its Q4 earnings report
• HSBC upgraded NIO to ‘Buy’ with a $6.80 price target; Nomura also upgraded to ‘Buy’ with a $6.60 target
• Nio posted its first-ever quarterly profit of 282.7 million yuan on revenue of $4.95 billion
• Q4 vehicle deliveries jumped 72% year-over-year to 124,807 units
• CEO William Li received a stock-based incentive plan tied to 40–50% annual sales growth targets

Nio’s U.S.-listed stock climbed to a four-month high on Friday, closing up nearly 6% at $5.86. The stock has gained close to 20% since the company released its first-ever profitable quarter.

NIO Inc., NIO

Hong Kong-listed Nio jumped nearly 5% on Monday, adding to recent momentum.

The fourth quarter was a turning point. Nio reported net profit of 282.7 million yuan — its first quarterly profit — on revenue of 34.65 billion yuan ($4.95 billion), topping analyst estimates of 33.25 billion yuan. Adjusted EPS came in at 0.29 yuan, well above the 0.05 yuan consensus.

Vehicle deliveries in Q4 hit 124,807 units, up 72% year-over-year. Vehicle margins reached 18.1%.

For the full year, deliveries rose 47% to 326,028 vehicles, while annual revenue climbed 33.1% to 87.49 billion yuan.

Wall Street Upgrades Pile In

HSBC upgraded NIO to ‘Buy’ from ‘Hold’ and raised its price target to $6.80 from $4.80, pointing to improved earnings visibility and stronger conviction in Nio’s 2026 volume and earnings trajectory. The bank said new models — including the ES8 — could support delivery growth and margin expansion.

Nomura followed with its own upgrade to ‘Buy’ from ‘Neutral’, setting a $6.60 target. The firm said Nio’s business and financial performance have improved over the past two quarters and that the company appears to be entering a healthier cycle. Nomura still projects roughly 25% compound annual growth in shipments between 2025 and 2028, even after trimming its near-term forecasts.

Bank of America Securities raised its price target to $6.70 from $6.30 but kept a ‘Neutral’ rating. BofA cited Nio’s strong model pipeline and cost discipline, while flagging headwinds from lower EV subsidies and cost inflation in 2026.

CEO Incentive Plan Tied to Growth Targets

On the same day as earnings, Nio’s board approved a stock-based incentive plan for CEO William Li, granting him close to 249 million restricted stock units. The plan includes operational milestones requiring Nio to maintain annual sales growth of 40% to 50% over the next three to five years.

Q1 Guidance Above Consensus

For Q1, Nio guided for 80,000 to 83,000 vehicle deliveries — representing 90% to 97% growth over the prior year period. Revenue guidance of 24.48 billion to 25.18 billion yuan also came in above the 23.3 billion yuan consensus.

Nio’s cash reserve currently exceeds $5 billion. The company operates over 3,700 battery swap stations.

NIO stock crossed its 20-day moving average at $4.98 earlier this week, the first time it has done so in recent months.

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