NIO posts YoY growth in Q4, full-year revenues of 2023

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On March 5, Chinese new energy vehicle maker NIO released its financial results for the fourth quarter (Q4) and full year of 2023, both showcasing a year-on-year (YoY) growth.

In Q4 2023, NIO recorded total revenues of 17,103.2 million yuan (US$2,408.9 million), which climbed 6.5% from Q4 2022, but dropped 10.3% from the third quarter (Q3) of 2023.

Its total revenues for the full year of 2023 reached 55,617.9 million yuan (US$7,833.6 million), growing 12.9% from the previous year.

ES6; photo credit: NIO

The company saw its vehicle sales in Q4 2023 reach 15,438.7 million yuan (US$2,174.5 million), reflecting a YoY increase of 4.6%, but facing a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) decline of 11.3%.

NIO said the YoY growth in its Q4 2023 vehicle sales was mainly attributed to the increase in delivery volume, which partially offset by the lower average selling price as a result of changes in product mix. However, the QoQ decrease also mainly resulted from a downturn reflecting in the delivery volume compared to the previous quarter.

In Q4 2023, NIO delivered 50,045 vehicles, displaying a YoY jump of 25%, but a QoQ decrease of 9.7%.

The full-year vehicle sales of NIO amounted to 49,257.3 million yuan (US$6,937.7 million) in 2023, up 8.2% from the previous year.

The growth in its annual vehicle sales was mainly credited to the delivery volume growth as well. NIO delivered 160,038 vehicles through 2023, representing a jump of 30.7% from 2022.

In Q4 2023, NIO reported a gross profit of 1,279.2 million yuan (US$180.2 million), marking a notable YoY surge of 105.7%. However, this also represented a 16.0% decline from Q3 2023.

For the entire year of 2023, NIO's gross profit amounted to 3,051.8 million yuan (US$429.8 million), indicating a significant decrease of 40.7% from the previous year.

Its gross margin for Q4 2023 stood at 7.5%, a substantial improvement from 3.9% in Q4 2022, but a decrease from the 8% reported in Q3 2023. The YoY rise in gross margin was primarily attributed to an increased vehicle margin. However, the QoQ decrease in gross margin was mainly due to a decline in the margin from the provision of power solutions, which resulted from the power network expansion. This decline was partially offset by a higher vehicle margin.

Looking at the full year of 2023, NIO's gross margin was 5.5%, a decline from the 10.4% reported for the year of 2022.

In Q4 2023, NIO recorded a vehicle margin of 11.9%, demonstrating an enhancement compared to the 6.8% for Q4 2022 and 11% for Q3 2023. The YoY increase in vehicle margin was primarily driven by (i) a reduction in material cost per unit, and (ii) adjustments for inventory provisions, accelerated depreciation on production facilities, and losses on purchase commitments related to the previous generation of the ES8, ES6, and EC6 recorded in the year-ago period. The QoQ improvement in vehicle margin was mainly attributed to the decreased material cost per unit.

For the whole year of 2023, NIO's vehicle margin stood at 9.5%, reflecting a decrease from the 13.7% reported for the year of 2022.

In Q4 2023, R&D expenses for NIO amounted to 3,972.1 million yuan (US$559.5 million), indicating a marginal decrease of 0.2% compared to Q4 2022, but a notable increase of 30.7% from Q3 2023. While the R&D expenses remained relatively stable in comparison to the prior-year period, the upswing from Q3 2023 was primarily attributed to heightened design and development costs for new products and technologies, along with increased personnel costs in R&D functions.

For the full year of 2023, NIO reported R&D expenses of 13,431.4 million yuan (US$1,891.8 million), representing a 23.9% increase from the previous year.