Rollercoaster ride for Nikola and it’s founder Trevor Milton.
September started out great, with a partnership with General Motors leading to a stock price increase it’s stock price by almost %50 in 1 day, After a long and detailed report from Hindenburg Research claiming Trevor Milton is doing anything he can to keep investors happy while continuously failing to deliver. Full Report can be viewed below, it’s also worth mentioning that Hindenburg Research has shorts positions against the company.
Hindenburg Allegation: Nikola is a Massive Fraud Constructed on Dozens of Lies
Sometimes people misspeak by accident. No one has a perfect memory, and we all occasionally get things wrong.
But what we have witnessed at Nikola, and specifically from Trevor Milton, is a pattern of well-planned and deliberate acts of deception ranging from (a) the staging of non-working products as if fully functional, wrapped in numerous lies about capabilities that don’t exist; (b) the staging of misleading videos, which require extensive premeditation, planning and execution; (c) material lies about capabilities, partnerships and products that simply do not exist at all, on video and often in front of entire rooms full of people; and (d) a culture of secrecy and intimidation that to this point has largely kept it all under wraps.
We think Trevor Milton is incapable of telling the truth. We believe he lies like most people breathe. It is natural for him, and our extensive review of his history suggests it has been this way throughout his entire business career.
Every now and then a story comes around that exposes how little the “experts” really know. Theranos had inked partnerships with Walgreens, Safeway, and Cleveland Clinic and had staffed its board with luminaries. Madoff raised billions in capital from sophisticated investors across the globe.
The remarkable thing about Nikola’s story is not that someone like Trevor Milton exists, but that he has managed to parlay his stories and lies into deals with some of the best manufacturers and partners in the world by claiming to own vast proprietary technology and having successfully built revolutionary products that simply didn’t exist.
He transformed these deceptions and false promises into an empire that at one point was valued at $34 billion, larger than Ford and Fiat Chrysler. He’s signed deals with GM, Anheuser Busch, Bosch, Worthington, and a slew of significant automotive players. He received investment from Fidelity and ValueAct, among other name-brand institutions.
We truly think Nikola is both a sign of the times and a story for the ages.
Nikola Responce to Allegations
“Yesterday, an activist short-seller whose motivation is to manipulate the market and profit from a manufactured decline in our stock price published a so-called “report” replete with misleading information and salacious accusations directed at our founder and executive chairman. To be clear, this was not a research report and it is not accurate. This was a hit job for short sale profit driven by greed.
We have nothing to hide and we will refute these allegations. They have already taken up more time and attention than they deserve. We have retained leading law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP to evaluate potential legal recourse, including with respect to the activist short seller and any others acting in concert.
Nikola also intends to bring the actions of the activist short-seller, together with evidence and documentation, to the attention of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
We respect the rights of investors and the integrity of the market and will be back to you after we have advanced the process with the SEC.
Most importantly, Nikola remains focused on delivering on the promises we’ve made to our stakeholders.”
Update: 09/13/2020 – Bosch Disputes Hindenburg Allegation
Bosch now contradicts Hindenburg’s descriptions. ” We are aware of the Nikola Motor report published yesterday (…) by Hindenburg Research, ” the statement said. “Statements in the report that are attributed to a Bosch employee have been taken out of context and are not applicable.”
Bosch has been a supplier to Nikola Motor for several years. In an interview with WirtschaftsWoche, Bosch confirms that it will continue its partnership with Nikola: “The two companies plan to continue working together in the future – including on fuel cells”
Starting a green vehicle company is always challenging and even looking at Tesla with the best selling EV car in 2018, they still sold each vehicles at a loss. Their way around it is selling carbon credits to other companies. So in a way Tesla Is biding it’s time similar to Nikola. However its Nikola will have a lot harder time, because the hydrogen network and production are still being developed and expanded while anyone can add BEV support to their house for their Tesla.
