Startup EV manufacturer Atlis Motor Vehicles endured a tumultuous first few days as a publicly traded company. 

The stock kicked off at $27.50 per share on Tuesday and Nasdaq halted trading for volatility five times that afternoon. With brisk after-hours trading, Atlis began Wednesday morning sitting at $243.99, almost 900% higher than its IPO price. 

However, the peak was anomalous, and the stock was down to $63.48 by noon on Wednesday. Prices rallied to $83 before the close of trading, but then began a steady slide to $31.30 by mid-day Friday. 

What’s going on

Atlis Motor Vehicles’, based in Mesa, Arizona, claim to fame is it not only develops its own batteries for its pickup truck, but also offers that technology to other companies. The company’s primary vehicle is called the XT, and it’s built on an EV platform designed for heavy and light duty work trucks. 

The XT is intended for use in the agriculture, service, utility, and construction industries, and is designed to meet the towing and payload capabilities of legacy diesel-powered vehicles. The Atlis platform is similar to other slab-chassis designs, and the “skateboard” platform lends itself to custom applications built to customer specifications. 

Within the segment of EV truck makers including Rivian, Lordstown, and now Ford and GM, Atlis has yet to ship a vehicle or book any revenue. The company reported a loss of $17.3 million for the most recent quarter. In the current bear market, the initial run-up could be attributed to novelty appeal before major holders took a profit on an obvious bubble. 

When compared to other manufacturers, Atlis is late to market. Rivian has had to add a second shift to meet its production demands, and even Lordstown has built a pair of trucks for sale. Among legacy automakers, Ford and now GM are delivering electric trucks in volume. 

Now it’s about business

“We have achieved the milestone of becoming a publicly listed company,” said Mark Hanchett, Atlis CEO, “and now look forward to executing on an ambitious business plan to achieve revenue and profitability in an exciting and emerging market with significant opportunities to differentiate ourselves and tremendous potential to create, maintain and increase shareholder value.”

The plan Hanchett needs to execute is ambitious. The company has stated that it plans to begin production of the XT model before the end of 2022. Early in 2022, the company has stated a target price range of $45,000 — $85,000 for the truck, but the real sale points are the claims of up to 500 miles of range, 35,000-pound towing capacity, 5,000-pound payload capability and 15-minute charge time on Atlis-branded chargers. 

Atlis also plans to offer a subscription program for the truck, which would include registration and insurance for $700 per month.