Is Nikola Motors a Real Viable Business?
In 2020 we have seen a significant EV, tech and SPAC bubble for the stock market. You don’t have to be a short-seller to see that Nikola Motors $NKLA is among the most speculative stocks to grace us in Covid-19 warped territory.
At $32.00 Nikola is still an expensive stock. You don’t need to work for Hindenburg Research or Citron to see the fraudulent elements in Nikola and its CEO.
The EV market is an incredibly competitive market and hydrogen likely isn’t the answer of the 1st wave. The SPACs of 2020 rode the EV bubble into the sunset and the price will be steep for rookie investors in 2021.
- Hindenburg Research labeled the automaker as “an intricate fraud built on dozens of lies.”
- Based on recorded phone calls, text messages, and other evidence, Hindenburg says it has detailed false statements by Nikola founder Trevor Milton.
In a world permeated by echo bubbles, misinformation and the rich getting richer by Covid-19, you have to wonder about the business model of Trevor Milton.
Congrats to Hindenburg for exposing what appears to be a total fraud with $NKLA. Citron will cover half of all legal expenses. You can’t SLAPP the truth away. Explains why Milton sold at $10 this June $NKLA response warrants an SEC investigation to maintain integrity of EV mkt
— Citron Research (@CitronResearch) September 11, 2020
The instant billionaire has made his fortune even before his company has a viable product. It does make Elon Musk look like a genius when you realize how unsophisticated Mr. Milton’s plan truly is.
Allegations include that Nikola staged a 2018 video of its signature hydrogen fuel-cell truck driving, and that it has made deceptive claims about its battery development efforts after the failure of an acquisition deal.
You don’t have to make this stuff up, because professional shorts always get to the bottom of companies like Nikola Motors, which came into being at the height of the EV bubble of 2020.
The Hindenburg report’s most striking claim is that a January 2018 video purportedly showing a Nikola One hydrogen fuel-cell semi truck moving under its own power was staged. If you thought companies like WeWork and Uber were sketchy losing millions of dollars each quarter (even Netflix is in this category), Nikola is really next level.
As an investor you need to be able to see what business models are likely fraudulent and most prone to speculative nonsense.
This is not the first time Nikola Motors is under questions of fabrication. Bloomberg had previously reported that Nikola and its founder, Trevor Milton, made deceptive claims about the capabilities of the Nikola One unit displayed at a 2016 event.
We know Elon Musk makes “promises”, many of which never come true in terms of deadlines for his supposed “technology” company in Tesla Motors. In the Trump Era, exaggeration and deception win.
Shockingly, Hindenburgh also claims that Bosch, the manufacturing partner for Nikola’s “Tre” truck, “confirmed this month that they haven’t made any trucks yet,” despite Milton stating in a July podcast, “We have five of them coming off the assembly line right now in Ulm Germany.” This is not what you want to realize when you believe in a figurehead like Trevor Milton, who is trying to become like Elon Musk.
It really is a parody. Hindenburg also alleges Milton “was able to form partnerships with some of the largest legacy auto companies in the world in their desperation to catch up to Tesla’s EV leadership status.” Given the research I have done, I do have reason to believe the shorts on this one. So much of Nikola Motors is pure speculation. And a lot of things do not add up.
Hidenburgh’s accusations however also sound fantastical. Hindenburg said it has evidence including phone call recordings and text messages containing false statements and that the company staged a video showing a truck that appeared to be functional. The research firm said the truck was rather “towed to the top of a hill on a remote stretch of road and simply filmed rolling down the hill.”
The firm said Nikola’s response didn’t address any of its more than 50 questions, “after promising a full rebuttal.”
Nikola peaked most recently at $79.73 in June, but is now less than half of that stock price. That companies are parenting with Nikola (like GM) is almost unbelievable. Lately the stock is nearly as volatile as Tesla’s stock itself.
Tesla’s stock is not even worth $75, according to its fundamentals after the stock split, but we’re still in the EV bubble where Tesla’s stock is at $372 — even after nearly reaching $500 on August 31st, 2020.
Mr. Milton’s tweets and Nikola Motor’s PR seem more and more desperate, the more the stock deceases, which is never a good sign. When founders lie or mislead potential investors and partners, it could ruin the business and the stock could be worth zero as the business fails.
If you have a history of lying to investors, how does the founder deserve to be a billionaire? I think shorts play an important role in the stock market to uncover details like these which all investors need to consider factually.
New From Us: Nikola—How to Parlay An Ocean of Lies Into a Partnership With the Largest Auto OEM in Americahttps://t.co/GHf6kvUgo0 $NKLA
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— Hindenburg Research (@HindenburgRes) September 10, 2020