NEW YORK, May 24, 2026, 17:04 (EDT)
Rivian Automotive shares closed at $14.22 going into the Memorial Day break. The stock dropped early last week but gained in each of the last three sessions, ending up about 3.1% from a week ago. The Nasdaq is closed for Memorial Day, May 25. Regular trading hours—9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern—pick up on Tuesday.
Rivian’s market focus is back to a single point: whether the EV maker can scale the R2 into real volume while keeping cash burn down.
Rivian said in April it began making saleable R2 vehicles and has delivered the first units to employees. Deliveries to other customers are coming in the next few weeks. The R2 is Rivian’s mid-size SUV, pushing the company past its more expensive R1 series of trucks and SUVs.
Rivian is banking on its R2 lineup for 2026 growth, CEO RJ Scaringe told Reuters. The EV maker is aiming for 62,000 to 67,000 deliveries that year, up from 42,247 vehicles in 2025. “The growth is really, of course, what we see in R2,” Scaringe said. Reuters
Rivian’s financials are getting better but the company is still losing money. The first quarter brought in $1.38 billion in revenue, with a consolidated gross profit of $119 million — that’s after its direct production and service costs — and a net loss of $416 million. The company made 10,236 vehicles and delivered 10,365 for the quarter, and has kept its full-year delivery goal.
Rivian is looking to expand the R2 platform. CEO RJ Scaringe told Reuters this month, “There are other variants of R2, which we haven’t shown.” Cantor Fitzgerald’s Andres Sheppard said the R2 could “materially boost sales” and “capture additional EV market share.” Reuters
Rivian faces both pricing and demand risks with the R2. The company’s $57,990 launch variant will come first, with cheaper versions to follow, but Tesla’s Model Y already competes in that segment. Barclays analyst Dan Levy said a lot of R2 orders were likely made when buyers still expected to get the $7,500 EV credit, so the car could end up “significantly more expensive” for some without that subsidy. Reuters
Funding has helped keep the stock from trading only on factory ramp news. Volkswagen’s software tie-up with Rivian cleared a winter test in March, and that moves Rivian toward a $1 billion funding round as part of a deal that could be worth $5.8 billion by 2027. “We’re accelerating towards the future,” Volkswagen CEO Oliver Blume said. Reuters
Uber is putting more money on the table. The ride-hailing giant said it will invest up to $1.25 billion in Rivian, aiming to roll out 10,000 fully autonomous R2 SUVs as robotaxis starting in 2028. BNP Paribas analyst James Picariello called the agreement “widely expected” and noted Uber’s first batch of funding should handle the extra R&D. Reuters
Rivian isn’t counting on autonomy for profits yet; the tech is still a supply chain play. CEO Scaringe told Reuters the company is in “active discussions” with lidar firms. Lidar sensors use light to scan the road and build a 3D map. He said “all the real choices are coming out of China” where prices are lower. Reuters
Tuesday’s open will do more than usual. Rivian investors return from Monday’s holiday to an unchanged price, but still have to watch whether the delivery of R2s from workers to customers looks smooth and keeps last week’s rebound going.
