Lucid EV Company Stock Plunge By More Than 40%

U.S. electric vehicle maker Lucid has just seen its stock price plunge more than 40% intraday on July 15 2026 after market rumors surfaced that the company might file for bankruptcy protection, triggering volatility trading halts twice before being halted entirely.

Lucid management was quick to deny the reports, calling them “completely false.” The rumour reportedly originated from a media outlet citing restructuring advisory firm AlixPartners, which allegedly recommended that Lucid’s board consider strategic options including privatisation or filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection under U.S. law.

In response, Lucid spokesperson Nick Twork stated clearly that AlixPartners had not advised the company to file for bankruptcy and was only assisting with operational efficiency improvements. He also emphasised that Lucid had not formed any board committee specifically tasked with evaluating acquisition or restructuring proposals.

Financial data shows that as of the end of Q1 2026, Lucid held approximately USD714 million in cash and equivalents, with total liquidity of about USD3.2 billion. In April 2026, the company secured an additional massive USD1.05 billion in financing through multiple channels: USD550 million in convertible preferred shares from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), a USD200 million investment from Uber and USD500 million drawn from a PIF term loan facility.

Additionally, Lucid Motors still has access to roughly USD2 billion in undrawn loan commitments. Altogether, its total liquidity stands close to USD4.7 billion which seems sufficient, analysts estimate, to fund operations through the end of 2027.

Despite this relatively solid cash position, Lucid continues to incur substantial losses. Its net loss in Q1 2026 reached USD1.03 billion which is roughly triple the same period a year earlier. In 2025, the company delivered 15,800 vehicles like the Lucid Air which is a direct rival to the BMW i7 while burning through approximately USD3.8 billion in free cash flow, equating to an insane loss of around USD240,000 (approximately RMB1.625 million) per vehicle sold.

Meanwhile, Wall Street forecasts that Lucid will not achieve positive free cash flow until at least 2030 and expects cumulative losses to reach USD6.7 billion by 2028. To address its challenges, Lucid has implemented aggressive cost-cutting measures: in June, it carried out its second round of layoffs within four months, reducing headcount by 18%.

Since taking over as CEO, Silvio Napoli has restructured the executive leadership team and abandoned the company’s original 2026 production targets. Since going public via SPAC in 2021, Lucid’s stock once traded near USD58 per share but has since fallen more than 90%. Regardless of whether the bankruptcy rumours hold any truth, market confidence in Lucid which is a new-energy automaker (EV car brand) delivering fewer than 20,000 vehicles annually is steadily eroding away.