Possible Fisker Bankruptcy

[shrink]

Another one (potentially) bites the dust?

https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/...-possible-bankruptcy-filing-26e63d32?mod=e2tw

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[moosetags]

Sad, but not surprising.

Brian

 

[DuoRivian]

They can switch to getting a superior R2.

 

[a76marine]

Fkn paywall article.

 

[mikehmb]

I probably should have invested that money in Rivian at $10 vs. Fisker at $0.45 …

 

[Cycliste]

Fkn paywall article.

Here is a different paywall of the same article

https://apple.news/AZx7Cx26MRjCboWhmckqRyA

 

[DuoRivians]

Fisker, which recently warned that it risked running out of cash this year, hired financial adviser

FTI Consulting
and the law firm Davis Polk to work on a potential filing, the people said. The car company reported last month that it had $273 million in sales last year and more than $1 billion in debt.


Fisker last month issued a so-called going-concern warning that there was “substantial doubt” about its ability to stay in business. The company said it was negotiating to raise additional cash from investors and looking for a new manufacturing partner in the U.S.

Fisker and FTI Consulting declined to comment, while Davis Polk didn’t immediately respond.

Shares of Fisker fell more than 46% in after-hours trading Wednesday after The Wall Street Journal reported the company’s hiring of the restructuring firms.

The Manhattan Beach, Calif.-based company in late February delayed the release of its full financial results for last year, because it lacked a sufficient number of experienced accounting professionals, according to a regulatory filing.

Fisker is one of a cohort of once-highflying EV startups that went public at the beginning of the decade, many through special-purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, that helped fast-track their market debuts. Their rise also coincided with a surge of investor enthusiasm for companies that could potentially follow in

Tesla
’s footsteps and break into the highly competitive auto industry.


Instead, the companies have struggled with the complexities of mass manufacturing and, more recently, with sputtering demand for battery-powered vehicles from American car buyers.

Fisker delivered its first vehicles to U.S. buyers in June, just as worrying signs of a slowdown in sales growth were starting to emerge. The company cut its forecast for demand twice last year and lowered prices, citing “competitive realities.”

If Fisker files for bankruptcy protection, it will be the second collapse of a car company founded by former BMW and Aston Martin car designer, Henrik Fisker. The first company, Fisker Automotive, filed for bankruptcy in 2013.

Fisker’s share price has fallen over 97% since it went public in 2020 by merging with a special-purpose vehicle to 32 cents at Wednesday’s close. The company’s shares have traded below $1 for much of the year and are at risk of being delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.

The current iteration of Fisker, run by Henrik Fisker and his wife Geeta Gupta-Fisker, went public with a plan to challenge key tenets of how cars are built. Instead of building a factory and employing workers, Fisker outsourced production of the Ocean SUV, the company’s sole vehicle, to contract manufacturer

Magna Steyr
in Graz, Austria.


The strategy was supposed to help avoid many of the pitfalls that sank Henrik Fisker’s first company, by keeping operating costs lower.

But Fisker still struggled almost as soon as it began producing vehicles as it faced challenges getting its Ocean SUV from a factory in Austria to customers in the U.S. The company said it had regulatory approval delays, parts issues and turnover in its executive ranks—especially in its finance division.

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At the start of the year, Fisker said it was switching from a Tesla-inspired direct-to-consumer sales model to traditional dealerships after it found it was too expensive and time-consuming to build out its own network for stores and service centers.

Fisker said last month it would lay off 15% of its workforce, mostly from its service and retail-sales divisions.

The Ocean also has had quality issues, with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigating customer reports of the Ocean rolling away or a loss of braking performance. Fisker has said that the braking issue was resolved with a software update and that it was fully cooperating with NHTSA on its investigation.

Last month, Fisker said it missed its production target of at least 13,000 units last year, manufacturing a little over 10,000 vehicles. The company delivered around 4,900 vehicles to customers.

Fisker executives partly blame the complexities of the direct-sales system for its sluggish growth in sales.

Employees have been working to unload the nearly 5,000 vehicles it has in stock, which are worth roughly $500 million, according to the company. Fisker has said it wanted to sell all the vehicles by the end of March, in part by signing up new franchise dealerships.

Meanwhile, the launch of Fisker’s future products, a $30,000 crossover and a pickup truck, are dependent on the company’s ability to negotiate a new contract-manufacturing agreement in the U.S.

Fisker has said it is negotiating with a “large carmaker” for a potential investment and joint manufacturing agreement, which would allow the startup to produce new vehicles in the U.S.

In its going-concern warning last month, Fisker said that if it was unsuccessful at raising additional funds, it could have to scale back its manufacturing plans and spending on future vehicles.

 

[Tim-in-CA]

Looks like BK is imminent. Available vehicles have been pulled from their site. The Death Rattle has begun. Too bad, because the fundamentals of the vehicle seem OK, SW is what needs updating.

https://electrek.co/2024/03/25/fiskers-talks-with-large-automaker-fall-through-announcement-pending/

 

[kurtlikevonnegut]

Stock was delisted by the NYSE today.


Game over. @Dark-Fx what are you going to do with your Ocean?

 

[COdogman]

Making EVs is not for the weak. I was really rooting for them.

They should hook up with that Tony Aquila guy from Canoo. They have been riding the razor’s edge of bankruptcy for like 10 years now.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Stock was delisted by the NYSE today.


Game over. @Dark-Fx what are you going to do with your Ocean?

Drive it. Today I put my summer tires back on. Hard to believe I don't even have 2000 miles on these front brakes though.

 

[Chewy734]

Fkn paywall article.

 

[beyondgravity]

It is interesting. I was in the wilderness last weekend with my R1S called Costco. I was asked by two Tesla owners - I heard it does not even charge at L2 charging at home and how do you like it.

Of course, first person asked I thought he did not have any background on Rivian and maybe confusing with other EV that I do not know and then the second guy asked, I was surprised. Is there a nefarious plan hatched by Elon to sink all his competition.

I really want all these EV startups to be successful.

 

[Dark-Fx]

Is there a nefarious plan hatched by Elon to sink all his competition.

I really want all these EV startups to be successful.

You mean like Elon meeting with Ken Griffin at the superb-owl? The Fisker family isn't who I would put in charge, but they somehow did manage to bring a vehicle to market after their previous bankruptcy.

My Ocean is a great car with a lot of software problems. Occasionally something stops me from driving it, but those issues are resolved by a lock and unlock. Seems like something to do with modules not coming up in the proper order every time.

Still waiting on the next update that's supposed to fix a lot of the pain points. Got the first part of the update over the weekend but it didn't seem to actually apply. Hoping it actually gets pushed to the vehicle before Fisker actually ceases operation. The open-air part of the car is great. I blame Rivian for not delivering on the removable roof for my ownership of the Fisker.

 

[kurtlikevonnegut]

I liked the look of the Ocean, but it turns out you need more than a compelling looking car to be successful.

As I see it, every cancelled Fisker reservation is a potential R2 buyer.

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