Greased EV Lightning
I’ve got chills. Electric vehicle (EV) stocks are multiplying. And the sector’s losing control!
’Cause the power they’re supplying — it’s electrifying.
Dear readers, you better shape up. Because you need an EV stock, with returns that are true.
The natural choice here is, of course, Tesla Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA).
This past month, the OG EV maker became the world’s most valuable automaker with a valuation of $190.88 billion. That’s more than Volkswagen AG (OTC: VWAGY) at $79.28 billion and Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) at $175.76 billion.
If you’ve followed the news, Nikola Corp. (Nasdaq: NKLA) might be your next pick in the sector. The stock is up more than 90% since its initial public offering (IPO), making it an attractive (albeit speculative) trade. But Nikola is more of a hydrogen power play and less of an EV stock.
But what if you want to branch out and see the EV world a bit more? Potentially get in on an IPO of sorts?
Well, Great Stuff has you covered. Here are three EV sector stocks that are the literal definition of greased lightning:
1. Blink Charging Co. (Nasdaq: BLNK)
The name gives it away, but Blink Charging doesn’t make EVs — it makes charging stations for EVs. Not only that, it runs cloud-based payment and management services for EV charging stations. Think of Blink like a modern-era Marathon gas station — just without an oil addiction.
In short, Blink combines financial technology, the cloud and the EV market all in one neat package. That’s a lot of investor buzzwords. But the biggest tech buzzword only just arrived for Blink.
That big buzzword? Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL). The iDevice maker said during its June Worldwide Developer Conference that the Apple Maps app will include Blink stations as routing points for EVs. Now, this is old Wall Street news, so retail investors drove today’s 58% spike — i.e., this is a purely sentiment-driven rally.
That’s not to say Blink doesn’t have chops. The stock is up 217% in June alone. Its business model is solid, especially with EV growth ramping up. However, if you want in on BLNK, wait for a pullback from today’s surge.
2. Workhorse Group Inc. (Nasdaq: WKHS)
If you like Nikola but are unsure about hydrogen power, Workhorse is your company. Well … sort of. The company designs, makes, builds, sells and leases EV trucks and vans — mostly for light to medium duty. No semitrucks here, unfortunately.
Workhorse also makes delivery drone systems, which have really picked up in demand during the pandemic. They’re called … wait for it … HorseFly drones.
The company has seen a flurry of activity lately. Last week, Workhorse announced that it “successfully completed Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards” testing for its C650 and C1000 EV delivery vans. Following the news, analysts at Cowen lifted their price target from $4.50 to $11.50 due to the company’s low valuation.
WKHS rode high on a sentiment rally, though it’s nowhere near as severe as BLNK. Workhorse actually has some big-time investment capital behind it right now. Still, the stock is up an electrifying 606% in June. I think we can all agree that some profit-taking needs to take place before you add this highflier to your portfoilo.
3. Hyliion Inc. — aka Tortoise Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: SHLL)
So, Workhorse is more of a drone and last-mile-delivery EV company. But Hyliion is the real competition for Nikola.
Hyliion makes heavy-duty EV trucks, including semis. But the company is much more than just a traditional EV maker. It also provides hybrid diesel powertrains and EV battery solutions, and it can upgrade your existing semitruck to hybrid or full EV. (Check out the company’s website for more.)
Now that’s exciting!
What’s even more interesting is that Hyliion isn’t a publicly traded company yet. But it will be soon. Oh, it will be. Hyliion will go public by merging with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). That merger company is Tortoise Acquisition.
Now, we won’t get into the nitty-gritty of what a SPAC is — Barron’s has a detailed explanation of Hyliion’s SPAC offering if you’re interested.
The point is that you can invest in Tortoise now to get in on Hyliion when the company officially goes public. SHLL is up 173% since the SPAC news was announced, making Hyliion the hottest EV stock not yet on the market.
I know there are several Great Stuff readers complaining that they can’t get in on IPOs before the market pushes those stocks through the roof. Well, Hyliion may be just the opportunity you’re looking for.
Given how hot NKLA shares have been lately, Hyliion has considerable potential. Just remember, this is a very speculative trading idea — as are all public offerings.
As you can see, the EV market is really starting to heat up. And your options include more than just buying Tesla … and hoping CEO Elon Musk doesn’t say something off the cuff that tanks your investment.
Editor’s Note: We hear you, though. Wading into the electric waves of the EV market can get speculative … but there’s a better way to play it. See, there’s a radical energy transformation coming soon to 50 million American homes…
It’s not solar or wind, but a new technology that may be the most lucrative story of 2020.
I hope you’re sitting down, because we’re headed to the tippy top of the Hill today. We like to keep it fresh around here, see. But to be clear, we’re talking Banyan Hill — not Capitol Hill.
That’s right: Today we shelve our ordinary Quote of the Week (just for now) and listen in on the extraordinary — aka what Banyan Hill’s team of experts is talking about.
Today, we’re checking in with tech expert Ian King and his latest article: “The Government Won’t Tell You This About COVID-19.” No, put down the tinfoil hat, this isn’t some backroom, hush-hush conversation. (Though I, too, role-play as Mulder in my free time.)
Ian starts by dissecting all sorts of backward-looking news and indicators — sales data, unemployment and even inflation data. Like we’ve said before, the market drumrolls its anticipation with volatility, then sells on the news of this “expected” data.
As a former New York hedge fund manager himself, Ian said:
Hedge funds aren’t waiting for the news to come out. They’re front-running it by looking at alternative data sets.
They use satellite pictures of Walmart parking lots to predict sales, mobile data to see where shoppers are visiting and online surveys to better gauge business spending on capital goods.
There’s one alternative data set I’ve been closely monitoring during the pandemic. This one tracks restaurant reservations on OpenTable, a smartphone app that allows diners to secure a seat in advance.
Now, I’m not going to spoil the King’s data dive here — click here to see his investigation for yourself! He goes on to compare table reservations across major metros, how they each fell through the floor in March with the economic shutdown, then surged back with reopenings … before lagging once again.
Following OpenTable reservations as an economic indicator? Nice, I dig.
But if a picture’s worth a thousand words, this chart’s worth a million predictions. And my take is that we can see, down to a city-by-city level, exactly where the hoot-n-hollering virus will expand. It’s right there in the data.
OpenTable reservations jumped in Texas, Florida and California — the same states seeing COVID-19 spikes right now. If nothing else, there’s your leading “virus indicator” … if you ever wanted one.
And if you want a calculated approach to tech investing, this is just one “alternative data set” that Ian King tracks to give his readers an edge — especially for today’s markets. Click here to learn more about Ian King’s research!
Above all, stay safe out there, Great Stuff fam.
Greater Together: Write to Us!
So, what do you think about our new “Heard on the Hill” feature? Is there a Banyan Hill expert that you’d like to hear from most? Any topics on your mind?
Give us a shout and let us know! Here, we’ll even get the ball rolling for your email:
- Have you ever used alternative data to invest? (No, not alternative facts. Quiet, you…)
- What places are open in your area? Do you think they’ll close back up again?
- Do you feel safe enough to dine in at restaurants, or are you all about the takeout life?
- Has anyone really been far even as decided to use even go want to do look more like?
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Until then, stay Great!
Joseph Hargett
Editor, Great Stuff