So, Rivian Automotive, Inc. (RIVN) shares are basically doing nothing in Wednesday's premarket. They're up a whopping 0.06% to $16.00. But behind that flatline, the company is making a move that's all about the future—and about giving old stuff a new job.
The electric vehicle maker announced a partnership with Redwood Materials to build a battery energy storage system at one of its manufacturing plants. The twist? They're planning to use over 100 "second-life" battery packs—presumably ones that have lived their best life in a Rivian vehicle—to create a system that will initially store 10 megawatt-hours of energy. The partnership was announced Tuesday, and it's part of a bigger picture where the U.S. is going to need a lot of energy storage, like over 600 gigawatt-hours by 2030, to keep up with demand.
Technical Analysis
Let's talk about the stock's chart. Rivian is chilling in the middle of its 52-week range, which goes from $10.85 to $22.69. That's the kind of place you end up when the market can't decide if it's time to party or panic. Right now, it's trading 4.4% above its 20-day simple moving average but 3% below its 100-day average. Translation: things look okay for the very short term, but there's still some selling pressure hanging over the stock when you zoom out a bit.
The moving averages are stacked in a friendly order—the 20-day is above the 50-day—which suggests buyers have been stepping in on dips. But the stock is still stuck below that $17.50 resistance level. Until it breaks through there convincingly, any rally is just a theory.
The MACD indicator, which measures momentum, is showing some green shoots. The MACD line is above its signal line, and the histogram is positive, meaning upside pressure is building. In plain English, the recent price action is getting stronger compared to the older trend.
- Key Resistance: $17.50 — this is where the stock has recently hit a wall and sellers have shown up.
- Key Support: $14.00 — this is a zone where buyers have historically jumped in to stop declines.
Earnings & Analyst Outlook
The next big date on the calendar is April 30, 2026, when Rivian reports earnings. Here's what the street is expecting:
- EPS Estimate: A loss of 73 cents per share. That's worse than the loss of 48 cents a year ago.
- Revenue Estimate: $1.36 billion. That's up from $1.24 billion year-over-year.
- Valuation: There's no meaningful P/E ratio because, well, the company isn't profitable yet.
Analysts, on average, have a Hold rating on the stock with a price target of $18.76. Some recent moves include:
- Tigress Financial: Maintained a Buy rating with a $25.00 target on April 10.
- Canaccord Genuity: Maintained a Buy rating with a $22.00 target on April 6.
- DA Davidson: Upgraded the stock to Neutral on April 1, keeping a $14.00 target.
Market Data Snapshot
A look at market data signals shows Rivian with a neutral momentum score. The trend signals are moderate compared to the broader market. The verdict here is that the story is momentum-driven, but it's stuck in the middle—it needs to hold above support and push through resistance to really improve the technical picture.
Top ETF Exposure
Rivian isn't just a stock; it's a piece of other investment products. It has notable weight in a few exchange-traded funds:
Why does this matter? Because if money flows into or out of these ETFs, the funds have to buy or sell Rivian shares automatically to match their indexes. So, big ETF moves can create mechanical buying or selling pressure on the stock, regardless of Rivian's own news.
Price Action
To wrap it up, Rivian shares were essentially unchanged at $16.00 in premarket trading Wednesday, according to market data. The company is making a smart, long-term play with battery recycling, but for now, the stock is waiting for a catalyst to break out of its rut.
