For investors, VinFast Auto(NASDAQ: VFS) has been an intriguing option from the get-go. The company switched to fully producing electric vehicles (EVs), has a deep pocketed founder and state-of-the-art production facilities, completely dominates its home Vietnamese market, and has ambitions to expand overseas.
On the last note, there's a little bit of good news recently. Here are the details.
What's going on?
There are actually two bits of good news for investors. The first is that the Vietnamese EV maker has signed a non-binding deal with a consortium of Emirati investors to receive at least $1 billion in funding. This is good news for investors who have grown accustomed to investment coming from VinFast's parent company and founder.
The investment comes at a time when VinFast has officially begun expanding in the Middle East, which is the second bit of good news for investors. VinFast opened its first dealership located in Dubai, a significant milestone in the EV maker's global expansion strategy. According to management, additional VinFast dealerships will open in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain.
It's part of a broader expansion that includes the lucrative U.S. market. In April, VinFast announced it officially signed agreements with 12 new car dealers in the U.S., which brings the total number of dealerships to 18 across seven states: North Carolina, New York, Texas, Florida, Kansas, Connecticut, and Kentucky.
It's just one phase of the original plan that calls for a nationwide dealer network with over 125 sales points in the initial phase and "hundreds" by the end of 2024. VinFast originally aimed to be present in up to 50 markets and countries by the end of 2024 and the EV maker has two assembly facilities in the plans for 2026 in India and Indonesia that will be able to produce up to 50,000 units during the first phase.
What have you done for me lately?
VinFast's expansion will be challenging and costly, but the company does have some momentum behind it after strong third-quarter delivery numbers. VinFast reported a strong 66% increase in EVs during the third quarter, totaling 21,912 units. VinFast achieved its highest monthly deliveries in just September.
It is however worth noting that in the past a sizable chunk of the company's deliveries has been to Green SM (GSM), a Vietnamese EV taxi service also owned by the chairman and founder of VinFast's parent company VinGroup, Pham Nhat Vuong. It's possible VinFast's delivery numbers appear a little more inflated than they would otherwise.
For investors, patience will be required as the company sets out on its expensive expansion. During the second quarter, losses widened due to the overseas expansion and impairment charges. VinFast posted a net loss of $773.5 million during the second quarter, a significant 27% increase from the first quarter and 40% larger than the same period a year ago.
It's also a big reminder for investors that VinFast is a highly speculative company and can trade higher or lower on little to no news. If investors are patient enough to see through VinFast's long-term expansion strategy, the company is speculative enough it should remain a small part of your overall portfolio.
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Daniel Miller has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
