Electric heavy-truck maker Nikola said on Thursday that it plans to raise $100 million via a secondary stock offering to the public and — possibly — a private sale of stock to an unnamed investor, if needed.
The company’s shares were down about 5% in after-hours trading following the news.
Nikola’s plan to raise capital comes in two parts. First, the company said, it will offer up to $100 million worth of stock to the public via a traditional secondary offering, with Citigroup underwriting. Citigroup will have the option to purchase an additional $15 million worth of shares.
Secondly, Nikola said it has entered into a forward stock purchase agreement with an unnamed investor. If the public offering raises less than $100 million, that investor has agreed to buy the remainder at the public offering price.
Either way, Nikola will raise $100 million before fees, money that it plans to use for working capital and other general purposes.
Nikola is slowly ramping up production of its electric semitrucks after building just 258 battery-electric trucks in 2022. The company said last month that it expects to build between 250 and 350 of the battery-electric semis in 2023, along with 125 to 150 of its upcoming fuel-cell-powered trucks, set to launch this fall. The fuel-cell trucks will have longer range than the battery-electric versions.
Nikola had $233.4 million in cash and equivalents available as of Dec. 31, down from $315.7 million at the end of September. The company lost $222.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2022.
