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EV Stocks to Electrify your Portfolio in 2023

November 21, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

These three EV stocks have plenty of potential to rise in 2023.
XPeng (XPEV): This Chinese EV manufacturer has strong fundamentals and growth potential in the coming years.
Polestar Automotive (PSNY): This company has strong backing from auto giants, ensuring this project’s success.
AB Volvo (VLVLY): VLVLY is all set to ramp up its production of heavy-duty electric trucks.

Growth and tech stocks have taken a massive hit this year due to a range of macro factors. Soaring inflation has led to hawkish monetary policy from the Federal Reserve. This hasn’t helped supply chains, which remain bottlenecked around the world. For electric vehicle (EV) stocks, this has been a perfect recipe for lower valuations, at least in the near term.

Many premium EV makers are also suffering from shifting consumer preferences. Many consumers may be looking to delay an EV purchase due to a higher-than-expected price tag. Accordingly, while there does appear to be great opportunity around EV stocks right now, being selective is going to be more important than ever.

Broadly, the ongoing climate crisis is shifting how governments and countries are thinking about this sector. In Germany, targets have been put in place aimed at putting approximately 15 million electric vehicles on their streets by the end of 2030. Additionally, California and Canada plan to make 100% of new car sales zero emission by 2035. These are ambitious goals, to be sure.

In order to achieve these goals, these nations need electric vehicles that their citizens and businesses can purchase. These three companies are among the leading high-growth EV makers I think could gobble up global market share over time.

XPeng (XPEV)

Let’s start our list of EV stocks to buy with Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng (NYSE:XPEV). This company designs, manufactures and delivers smart electric cars mainly in the Chinese market. Other revenue segments aside from EV production include maintenance, vehicle leasing, supercharging and auto finance services.

Notably, XPeng has seen robust growth in deliveries of late. Its October delivery numbers showed the company delivered 5,101 EVs, including 709 G3i smart compact SUVs, 1,665 P5 smart family sedans and 2,104 P7 smart sports sedans. This translated into year-over-year growth of 56%, a very impressive number relative to its peers.

He Xiaopeng, XPeng Inc.’s CEO and Chairman, also said in a statement that the company’s transportation and logistics are all set to increase production at the beginning of November.

Moreover, this Chinese EV giant has passed the autonomous driving test for launching robotaxi services. It plans on launching this service next year in Guangzhou and, within the next two years, expand it to other major cities.

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Polestar Automotive (PSNY)

A Swedish manufacturer of premium electric vehicles, Polestar Automotive (NASDAQ:PSNY) is a very compelling option in the world of EV stocks. Some of this has to do with the company’s impressive backers, which include Geely (OTCMKTS: GELYF) and Volvo (OTCMKTS:VLVLY).

However, one of the key reasons I like this stock right now is the fact that Polestar just declared its first gross profit after turning public.

Compared to the same quarter last year, its sales were up by 105%, amounting to $4 million gross profit. Moreover, driven by rising sales in Q4 2022, Polestar estimates to generate $2.4 billion from the sale of its vehicles. This company is also set to release the Polestar 4 SUV, the Polestar 5 grand touring sedan and the Polestar 6 roadster in the years to come.

Furthermore, thanks to the financial support from its major shareholders (Geely and Volvo), the Swedish EV maker has $1.6 billion in capital to support its operations in 2023. Volvo Cars provided $800 million of this amount in the form of an 18-month term loan that also has an equity conversion option.

Thomas Ingenlath, the CEO of Polestar, welcomes this funding, as it will help the EV maker stay focused on its business while the capital market suffers from volatility and unpredictability.

Volvo (VLVLY)

Another Sweden-based EV maker, Volvo is one of the most popular companies globally in the world of electric vehicles. Interestingly, this company’s focus on the EV sector isn’t limited to passenger vehicles. The company also produces and distributes buses, trucks and construction equipment.

This is a segment I think is worth looking at. The company’s production in these niche areas of the market is picking up. As of early October, Volvo announced the supply of 20 heavy-duty, fully electric trucks to Amazon in Germany. These trucks have the expected capacity to drive for one million kilometers in a year, and have the potential to curtail Germany’s domestic transport emissions — 36% of which are caused by heavy goods and commercial vehicles.

Volvo has also increased its production of electric trucks for regional and inter-city use, setting an important milestone for decarbonization. Moreover, this global EV manufacturer says that approximately 50% of its new truck sales will be fuel-cell electric or battery-operated by 2030.

Volvo also plans to make battery modules at its Belgium plant in 2025. As per company sources, this will help Volvo develop a future value chain for its battery systems. Thus, I think this is one of the top EV stocks to consider in terms of growth upside moving forward.

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On the date of publication, Chris MacDonald did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.

The Main Reason Behind the Energy Crisis in Europe…

September 27, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

Why Europe Loves Natural Gas

One of the main factors driving the energy crisis in Europe is the rise in natural gas prices.

Europe loves natural gas. It gets about a quarter of its energy from it.

And what’s not to love?

It’s a superior form of fuel to oil and coal because of its energy density.

Natural gas is versatile. You can use it to heat your home or to spin a turbine and produce electricity. You can use it to power home cooking appliances and vehicles.

You can also use it to make fertilizer. And that’s crucial for the food production industry, as I wrote a few months ago.

Natural gas also produces less pollution than some other fuels. It emits about half as much carbon dioxide as coal, for example.

The upshot is that European nations wanted to move away from the dirtier, polluting fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, and, in some cases (think Germany), nuclear. So it had every incentive to fall in love with natural gas.

But there was a problem…

You see, there are two ways to move natural gas around. The first is by sea, using liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers.

This option requires an export facility to chill the natural gas down until it becomes liquid. It is then pumped onto these giant boats and shipped across the world.

Then on the other end, you need an import terminal to re-gasify it. All this infrastructure takes billions to make and years to construct.

The second option is much simpler. It involves transporting natural gas via pipeline.

Europe chose the easier way. It imported natural gas from Russia through pipelines.

Russia was right next door, after all. And it produced lots of natural gas.

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From Nord Stream to No Stream

Until recently, Russia was a major exporter of natural gas to the rest of Europe. Last year, the European Union (EU) got roughly 45% of its imported natural gas from Russia, according to the International Energy Agency.

Russian gas reaches Europe via a complex network of pipelines running through eastern Europe.

The most important pipeline is Nord Stream 1. It’s approximately 1,200 kilometers long and runs under the Baltic Sea between Russia and Germany. Up to 170 million cubic meters of gas can flow through Nord Stream 1 daily.

Since it became operational in 2011, more than 441 billion cubic meters of Russian gas have flowed to Europe via Nord Stream 1.

In 2021, Europe imported 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas from Russia. Nearly 40% – 59 billion cubic meters – came through Nord Stream 1.

Nord Stream 1 is owned and operated by Nord Stream AG, whose majority shareholder is the Russian state company Gazprom.

For years, Nord Stream 1 has embodied the tacit deal between Russia and the European Union.

Russia was willing to supply copious amounts of natural gas at favorable prices. It developed infrastructure to take its gas to Europe.

Europe built industries that depend on that cheap supply of Russian gas. And industrial powerhouses, like Germany, built their entire economies around it.

But then, earlier this year, Russia went to war with Ukraine. That changed everything.

The EU slapped Russia with unprecedented sanctions. Russia retaliated by cutting the flow of natural gas via Nord Stream 1 by about 60%.

Then during its annual scheduled maintenance this summer, the pipeline flow dropped to zero. When it came back online, it came back at 40% capacity before dropping to 20%.

Then, at the end of August, Russia shut down the pipeline again, supposedly for maintenance. This shutdown was to last three days. But at writing, the pipeline remains offline.

Russia’s Endgame Could Mean Lights Out for Europe

As a result of all these actions, the European gas price went parabolic this summer. At one point, it cost $340 per megawatt-hour (MWh). That’s 312% higher than in January 2022, before Russia invaded Ukraine.

You can see the huge spike in natural gas prices that coincided with the Nord Stream 1 shutdown in the chart below.

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Now, while the price has dropped back somewhat in recent weeks, as Europe secures alternative supplies, the uncertainty surrounding their natural gas supply is a huge concern for the eurozone countries.

Consider this…

At about $12 per megawatt-hour (MWh) in November 2021, the eurozone’s energy import costs were $200 billion. That’s 1.6% of its GDP.

If gas settles at about $200 per MWh, this number will increase by roughly $700 billion to 7% of GDP.

At $300 per MWh, it would rise by about $900 billion. That’s a crippling 8.5% of its GDP.

So, Russia’s endgame is simple – to keep gas prices as high as possible to inflict maximum pain on Europe, so it eases off on sanctions.

Energy Rations Becoming a Reality

The way things are going, it looks inevitable that Europe will have to ration gas and energy come winter.

Germany is already discussing its options. German politicians are trying to decide how German industry will be prioritized. Difficult questions are being asked.

Questions like… Who gets the gas when there is a shortage? Who has to close the shop?

But whichever way they slice it, it will likely end up plunging Europe’s largest economy into crisis.

And if that happens, the entire European Union – and potentially the entire world – is in trouble.

Tomorrow, in the second part of this two-part essay, I’ll show you how to turn rising energy prices into profits in your portfolio.

Regards,

Nomi Prins
Editor, Inside Wall Street with Nomi Prins

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Is Decentralized Manufacturing the Key to our Clean Energy Future?

April 5, 2022 By admin Leave a Comment

The sanctions have resulted in excess production in Russia. The trading companies in Europe can only buy and store so much oil for future refinement. That means that Russia’s storage facilities and pipelines are at full capacity. I don’t think it will be long before wells shut down because there is no place to put the oil.

Some might think, “Great! Serves them right!” But there are other implications…

Once these wells shut down, or freeze, new wells must be drilled. It could take years, or even a decade, before Russia’s production returns to 2021 levels.

And that means much higher prices for oil in many parts of the world for an extended period of time. I believe that Europe will eventually see $200 a barrel.

Only countries that have the capacity for domestic production will be able to keep oil below $100 a barrel. Prices in the $120–150 range will be considered normal.

The U.S., however, is fortunate to have strong domestic production capabilities. And as I predicted on Monday, I believe that the current administration will have to ramp up domestic production and likely ban oil exports in the interest of keeping oil, and thus gasoline prices, down.

It will be entirely political, but it will happen nonetheless. This will, of course, come at the expense of other countries who would like to purchase excess production.

It has never been more obvious that we need energy-producing technology that will meet the world’s energy requirements in a fully decentralized manner, where no one country can have such an outsized – and negative – impact on the global economy.

The three most critical and fundamental needs of the human race are food, potable water, and energy. Yes, love and friendship count, too. But without food, water, and energy, there wouldn’t be a human race.

Limitless, abundant, and clean energy across the planet can bring abundance in both food and water (think desalinization). Imagine a world in which there would be no need for any geopolitical conflict caused by the need for energy. Sources of energy have been the driver of war for centuries.

The answer is, of course, the power of the Sun – the nuclear reactions that literally sustain life on Earth by making the planet habitable. It’s time for the world to step up and make nuclear fusion a reality.

Carbon-free, emission-free, abundant, and limitless power… Some forms of which don’t produce any nuclear waste at all.

If we don’t solve the problem for clean, utility-scale, baseload energy production, we’re going to be suffering decades more of geopolitically-driven pain and suffering largely caused by the puppet masters toying with our own life and liberty.

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The all-seeing orb is cashing up…

We talked about Worldcoin and its all-seeing orb back in November. This creepy project is moving forward faster than expected…

For the sake of new readers, Worldcoin envisions creating a global monetary system.

Worldcoin’s plan is to scan everyone’s retina to create a unique biometric identity. That identity then becomes a digital wallet for the project’s cryptocurrency, Worldcoin (WDC).

The device that scans retinas is “the Orb.” It’s a silver orb that looks like the palantir “seeing stones” in The Lord of the Rings movie series.

Worldcoin is aggressively pushing the Orb on consumers. The project’s goal is nothing short of capturing every eyeball on the planet. And Worldcoin is giving away “free” WDC to everyone who scans their retina as an incentive.

“Orb operators” are also incentivized to sign people up by awarding the operators WDC for their services. Worldcoin reports that the “best” orb operators can sign up about 1,000 people a week with a single orb.

Well, Worldcoin just raised $100 million in a WDC token sale… at a $3 billion valuation. That’s steep given the project is still in its early stages.

Among the institutions that purchased WDC tokens were crypto-focused powerhouse venture capital (VC) firm Andreessen Horowitz, Coinbase Ventures, and Digital Currency Group (DCG). In addition, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman personally invested in Worldcoin’s token sale.

This is a powerhouse of backers. I’m a bit surprised to see them investing in Worldcoin at a $3 billion valuation… especially considering the privacy issues around taking biometric data from people.

Of course, Worldcoin’s mission sounds very altruistic. It’s all about global financial inclusion. And its website is even set up as a ‘.org’.

But to me, this is the same pitch we got from Facebook (now Meta). And we know how poorly Facebook has treated its users’ data.

So I’m very skeptical. And I don’t believe for a moment that our biometric information will be kept “safe.” I absolutely recommend readers stay as far away from Worldcoin’s Orb as possible… Please don’t look “deep into its eye.”

Still, we will need to keep a close eye on this project going forward. Worldcoin’s cryptocurrency, WDC, might just be a good speculation at some stage.

And with $100 million in new funding and powerhouse backers, Worldcoin is setting itself up to gain some serious momentum…

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More evidence that decentralized manufacturing is the future…

Tesla just opened its first European factory in Germany last week.

This is a remarkable development given all the chaos unfolding in Europe right now. And it clearly demonstrates the major shift in manufacturing we have been tracking in The Bleeding Edge…

As we know, people hold the German auto industry in high regard. German-made cars are typically associated with high quality and attention to detail.

However, Germany is also known for high labor costs. Labor unions are very strong in the country. The average workweek for German auto workers is just 35 hours per week. I can’t imagine what that would feel like… A light week for me is 70 hours.

The high costs and relatively low hours make it expensive to manufacture in Germany. Yet Tesla plans to produce half a million vehicles every year in this new factory.

In other words, Tesla’s automation technology has made it economical to produce cars in high-cost markets for the first time in decades.

And this allows Tesla to manufacture much closer to its target markets. This is the decentralized manufacturing trend that has been gaining steam over the last several years.

For the last several decades, nearly all manufacturing has been centralized in China and Southeast Asia. Then companies would ship the finished goods to consumers in the U.S. and Europe. This makes for complex supply chains that, as we discovered, are subject to major disruption.

Tesla is breaking that cycle. We are witnessing a dramatic shift towards decentralized manufacturing and something called reshoring.

And it’s all thanks to automation. Robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) can now boost productivity and make manufacturing economical in the West again.

This is a trend that will accelerate for the rest of this decade.

And we’ll continue to find ways to profit as the trend continues.

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NVIDIA’s $1 trillion opportunity…

NVIDIA just held its annual GPU Technology Conference (GTC).

To me, this is one of the most important conferences of the year. I always drop in to listen to CEO Jensen Huang’s presentations.

And Huang’s presentation this year was certainly special. He announced NVIDIA’s new AI semiconductor architecture. It’s called the Hopper chip family – named after computer scientist Grace Hopper.

The Hopper chips are designed to replace NVIDIA’s Ampere chips. And get this – the first Hopper-based chip, H100, provides nine times the performance of its predecessor. This is a revolutionary step forward.

The new chip uses 4 nanometer (nm) processing technology. And it consists of 80 billion transistors. That’s 68% more than the Ampere chips.

So the Hopper chips represent almost a magnitude jump in performance. And that opens the door to a massive market opportunity.

With this new product, Huang said the company is targeting industries with $100 trillion in revenue. And he believes NVIDIA can capture 1% of that.

In other words, NVIDIA has a $1 trillion-a-year opportunity.

Here’s the breakdown of where NVIDIA thinks this $1 trillion in revenue will come from:

$300 billion – Automotive industry
$300 billion – Data center applications
$150 billion – AI for enterprise software
$150 billion – AI software for the Omniverse (NVIDIA’s word for metaverses)
$100 billion – Gaming industry

Incredible.

And what stands out to me most is how far NVIDIA has come since I first recommended the company in February of 2016. That was at a small conference focused on high-net-worth investors and family offices.

At the time, NVIDIA was considered to be just a video game tech company. Its graphics processing units (GPUs) were primarily used almost exclusively for gaming.

But I knew that NVIDIA’s GPUs would ultimately enable AI and machine learning applications at scale, as well as power autonomous vehicles. That was my pitch in 2016. NVDA was trading around $24 per share at the time.

Fast forward to today, and my predictions all came true. NVDA trades around $283 a share. Anyone who bought on my original recommendation in 2016 is now up 4,290%.

And subscribers to The Near Future Report are up 721% on my official recommendation in that publication. (If you’d like to learn more about joining us, go right here for more information.)

This is such an incredible success story. NVIDIA is a textbook example of what’s possible when bleeding-edge technology is applied to explosive growth markets.

What’s more, NVIDIA’s new chip architecture will lead to incredible breakthroughs in the field of AI and machine learning in 2023 when Hopper becomes widely available. I can’t wait to see what comes from this.