Ferrari shares slump 6% after new electric vehicle is bashed online. Why Wall Street says buy the dip
Shares in Ferrari NV sank as much as 6% on Nasdaq after unveiling its new electric vehicle to unimpressive online reviews. But shares of the Italian luxury carmaker should once again gain ground if it can leverage its latest offering to reach new customers, according to a pair of analyst notes. On Monday, the luxury carmaker unveiled Luce, its first all-electric vehicle, in Rome. Investors worried the new EV would fail to boost sales due to sharp design differences with other vehicles in Ferrari’s lineup. RACE 1D mountain Ferrari fell as much as 6% Tuesday on Nasdaq. “Unfortunately, the Luce may feed into the bear case in the near-term based on initial reactions,” Evercore ISI analyst Michael Binetti wrote Monday in a note to clients. “But we still have a lot to learn as it seems the car will be almost entirely sold to new clients that aren’t yet part of the Ferrari client base … and those clients are likely not participating in today’s online narrative on the release.” The analyst rates Ferrari an outperform, with a $475 target on the stock that would represent 36% upside from the last close. Public criticisms Investors reacted to public criticisms of the new EV on various social media platforms. “Never thought I’d say this about a Ferrari, but this is one of the ugliest EV designs ever, and it can be all yours for $640,000 lol,” one X user said Monday in a post. The new Italian car comes as demand for luxury electric cars remains low, although the introduction of Luce could help stimulate sales, eventually lifting Ferrari shares, according to investment firm Bernstein. “In the 1989 movie, Field of Dreams, Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella is walking through his cornfield, and hears a voice telling him to build a baseball diamond right there — ‘If you build it, he will come,'” Bernstein analyst Stephen Reitman said Tuesday in a note to clients. “The launch of Ferrari’s first battery electric vehicle, the Luce, may not have similar spiritual antecedents to the aforementioned movie, but the expectation is not too dissimilar — if Ferrari builds the car, the clients will come.” Bernstein has an outperform rating on Ferrari with a 12-month price target of $402, suggesting 15% upside from Friday’s close. Evercore ISI and Bernstein’s calls match the general consensus on the Street, where 11 of 13 analysts rate Ferrari a buy or strong buy, LSEG data shows. The stock is down about 13% in the past three months.