Canoo Reports Losses for Q4 and Full Year, Along With Signs of Growth

Canoo Inc. CEO Tony Aquila, left, shows Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson the inside of one of the company's electric vehicles during an event at the Governor's Mansion on Feb. 22, 2022. 

Canoo Inc., which is moving its headquarters to and opening an advanced manufacturing facility in Bentonville, widened its losses in the fourth quarter and the full year.

The electric vehicle maker (Nasdaq: GOEV) released its earnings late Monday and also announced that it:

• Broke ground on its facility in Pryor, Oklahoma.
• Leased its Bentonville facility and purchased 40% of the equipment required. 
• Secured $400 million in incentives from Oklahoma and Arkansas.
• Expects to move 1,000 vehicles for the state of Arkansas to stage three production.
• Received $15 million from Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Quick Action Closing Fund.
• Received an $8.4 million equity investment.
• Finalized a purchase agreement for 1,000 vehicles with the state of Oklahoma.

Canoo reported net losses of $138.1 million and $346.8 million for the quarter and fiscal year 2021, respectively. It lost $9.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2020 and $86.7 million in fiscal year 2020.

Net loss per share was 60 cents for the quarter, compared to 6 cents, and $1.52 for the year, compared to 79 cents.

The company did not report total revenue per se, but instead said, for the year, net cash used in operating activities totaled $300.8 million and net cash used in investing activities totaled $162.7 million. Both increased from $107.1 million and $7.6 million, respectively, compared to 2020.

For the fourth quarter, Canoo reported net cash used in operating activities was $120.2 million, up from $42 million in the same period the year before. Net cash used in investing activities was $62.6 million, up from $6.3 million.

Canoo CEO Tony Aquila said during the company earnings call late Monday, “We are in it to change it, to build a company that is valued as a true high-tech, customer-centric advanced mobility company. We know this takes time, sacrifice, perseverance and — even at times — persecution by those who don’t believe enough in the future and how different it will be.

“But we do. Those who join Canoo, if they have the same ethos, they will make it here. They find their home, passion and mission to build a high-tech, cost affordable, long-life ecological platform that is built upon diversity and inclusion from the very beginning,” he continued.

“We’re not looking to create the next GM or Ford. We respect them, but we have no desire to be like them within our culture and/or the long-term outcome for investors,” Aquila said. “That said, we want all American [original equipment manufacturers] or those working in advanced mobility to win. For us, this isn’t just about competition to win. It’s about competition for American innovation and ingenuity to win.”

The company’s goal is to deliver 3,000-6,000 vehicles this year and 14,000-17,000 vehicles in 2023.

Aquila told investors on the call that, while the company’s decision last year to reshore manufacturing was not a popular one, companies that are manufacturing abroad and bringing products to the U.S. are dealing with risks that include rapidly increasing shipping costs, supply chain disruptions, growing labor costs related to inflation and currency fluctuations.

Aquila, in response to a question, said Tesla’s Elon Musk gave companies like Canoo a “good roadmap; so did others who did it wrong by raising too much capital.” He said the company is using non-dilutive capital (funds a company receives without giving up any equity) first and building up assets so that it can access other types of capital later. It’s also building in what’s called “opportunity zones,” which gives Canoo access to even more funding options.

Also during the call, Aquila touted last week’s formation of the Arkansas Council on Future Mobility and the state’s work to improve EV infrastructure.