VinFast Auto Ltd (NASDAQ:VFS) shares have surged more than 369% since the Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) maker’s stock debuted in an initial public offering (IPO) on August 15.
VinFast now boasts a higher market capitalization than General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co combined.
“This is like a turbo-charged Rivian or Lucid, because there is so little of this stock available, and so anyone who walks in and buys 100,000 shares can move the stock,” DataTrek Research co-founder Nicholas Colas told Bloomberg.
A small float of about 1.3 million shares can create outsized stock price moves in either direction.
VinFast stock debuted on the Nasdaq Global Select Market following its merger with special-purpose acquisition company Black Spade Acquisition Co.
Pham Nhat Vuong, Vietnam’s wealthiest man and VinFast’s founder, controls about 99% of the company’s shares.
VinFast reported revenue of $633.8 million in 2022 along with a loss of $2.1 billion, and its forecast for units sold this year is less than 1% of what General Motors achieved in 2022, according to Bloomberg calculations.
VinFast has shipped nearly 3,000 vehicles to North America since late last year, but only 137 Vinfast EVs had been registered in the US through June, according to S&P Global Mobility.
Shares of VinFast jumped 19% to $81.83 in early Monday trading.
Contact Sean at sean@proactiveinvestors.com