Toronto, Ontario — In this weekly edition of Collision Repair’s Tuesday Ticker, EV automaker Rivian snags a top exec from Magna while Guelph, Ont.-based Linamar sees significant stock dips due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. Plus, AutoCanada reports a personal best for fourth-quarter revenues.
Rivian tags Magna exec
Electric vehicle maker Rivian announced it has selected Frank Klein, the head of Magna’s carmaking unit as its next COO.
Klein has been with Magna since April 2019, according to his LinkedIn page. Since 2020 he has served as president of Magna Steyr, the company’s contract vehicle manufacturing branch, where he oversaw the shift to the electric mobility manufacturing space, including the first electric vehicle made by a contract manufacturer, Rivian wrote in its Monday release.
Klein previously served in various management positions at Daimler AG for nearly three decades and was responsible for setting up the Mercedes-Benz plant in Kecskemét, Hungary.
Rivian plans to build 25,000 vehicles this year, which includes two consumer models and a battery-electric delivery van for Amazon. Meanwhile, the automaker halved its production outlook for 2022 to 25,000 vehicles.
As of March 8, Rivian said it had built 1,410 vehicles this year and 2,425 since its start of production. During the two weeks prior to March 8, the automaker said it averaged a weekly production rate about twice that of its Q4 2021 volumes, though it expected supply chain constraints to continue through 2022.
Shares of Rivian closed at 35.83 Monday, down 5.8 percent from Friday’s close.
Linamar lows
Linamar Corp. stock has taken serious hits in recent weeks, with shares falling 23.4 percent from Feb. 23.
The Guelph, Ontario-based company has been the second-worst performing stock on Canada’s benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index since February 23, the day Russia began its invasion of Ukraine.
Linamar CEO Linda Hasenfratz said the company expects to endure “another month to two months” of supply-chain problems directly related to the war.
“I think we shouldn’t get too carried away with the expectations of massive declines in the market in Europe,” said Hasenfratz in an interview with BNN Bloomberg. “Obviously, there’s going to be some short-term impact. There are suppliers in Ukraine who are unable to supply. So our customers are rapidly looking at where they can resource those components and systems, and executing on that as we speak.”
Shares of Linamar closed at 51.68 on Monday, down nearly 33 percent year-to-date.
Best ever for AutoCanada
Last week, AutoCanada reported its financial results for the three and twelve-month period ended December 31, 2021, marking the company’s highest fourth-quarter revenue ever reported.
Revenue was $1,195.8 million as compared to $876.1 million in the prior year, an increase of 36.5 percent, said the company.
“Our operations delivered yet another record fourth quarter, reflecting the fundamental strength and resiliency of our business model,” said Paul Antony, executive chairman. “Continued strong used vehicle sales and F&I business, proactive inventory management as well as outstanding performance in our U.S. operations were key drivers of our results.
“We also significantly advanced our acquisition strategy in the fourth quarter with the recent Autopoint transaction, providing strong brand and geographic diversification, and adding considerable size, scale and scope to AutoCanada’s existing platform in a growing market,” added Antony.
“Looking ahead in 2022, we will continue to build on our positive momentum and focus on strategic growth initiatives to drive industry-leading performance and enhance shareholder returns, regardless of changing market conditions. We remain well-positioned to continue to execute on our acquisition strategy in the coming quarters with several dealerships representing over $100 million in annual revenue currently being evaluated.”
