NIO Inc Earnings Preview: China EV Maker Faces Crucial Margin Test After Rare Profit Alert

NIO Inc Earnings Preview: China EV Maker Faces Crucial Margin Test After Rare Profit Alert

SHANGHAI, March 10, 2026, 02:38 UTC+8

  • NIO will release its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 numbers ahead of the U.S. open on Tuesday.
  • Back in February, the company projected it would notch its first quarterly adjusted operating profit.
  • Nio handed over 20,797 vehicles in February, marking a 57.6% jump from a year earlier.

NIO Inc is set to deliver its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results on Tuesday. Investors want to see whether management’s rare operating profit forecast can hold up beyond just one quarter. The Chinese EV company’s U.S.-listed stock added 9 cents to $4.87 on Monday.

Nio is under pressure to prove it can actually turn a profit amid China’s relentless electric-vehicle price war, not just pump up sales. In January, the company projected fourth-quarter adjusted operating profit—excluding certain items—would land between 700 million and 1.2 billion yuan. That’s a sharp swing from a 5.54 billion yuan adjusted operating loss a year before. Deliveries for the fourth quarter jumped 72% to 124,807 vehicles.

Fresh delivery figures gave Nio a boost. The company handed over 20,797 vehicles in February—a 57.6% jump versus last year. Total deliveries so far this year reached 47,979. ONVO and Firefly, the newer brands, added 5,638 units, signaling they’re moving out of the shadows.

Even so, the company isn’t calling one quarter a victory lap. CEO William Li, speaking to staff in comments cited by CnEVPost, cautioned that “annual profitability isn’t something easily achieved.” Nio is now targeting annual profitability—on a non-GAAP, or adjusted, basis—by 2026. CnEVPost

Outside Nio, comments have struck a more cautious note. Deutsche Bank’s Wang Bin and his team, cited by CnEVPost, pointed out that weekly new orders in early March climbed to roughly 3,500 units—the best single-week tally for 2026 so far—after Nio and ONVO rolled out new promotions. These deals range from seven-year low-rate financing and cash incentives tied to taxes, to extra perks for recent ES8 SUV buyers. ES8 wait times, meanwhile, have dropped sharply, now standing at just four to five weeks versus as many as 14 weeks back in February. That shift hints at lingering backlog stress, despite the uptick in orders.

XPeng put 15,256 vehicles on the road in February. Li Auto came in higher, delivering 26,421. BYD’s numbers looked rough, with February sales plunging 41.1% year-on-year, company statements and Reuters data show. It’s a wobbly beginning to 2026 for automakers after the Lunar New Year break.

Nio heads into the earnings report still dealing with fallout from a major recall. Back in February, Reuters reported that the automaker was pulling back 246,229 vehicles due to a software glitch linked to possible safety risks—the largest recall yet for a Chinese EV maker.

Nio’s set to release its report Tuesday before U.S. markets get going—investors looking for signs if the turnaround is holding up, or if numbers just got a lift from the ES8’s hot streak and some one-off cost wins. The conference call is on for 8 p.m. Beijing/Hong Kong/Singapore, with the 2026 profitability target likely to draw heavy scrutiny.

Khadija Saeed

Khadija Saeed is a financial markets reporter at TS2.tech, specializing in stocks, technology and emerging industries. She studied economics and finance at the London School of Economics and previously worked in market research before moving into financial journalism. Her coverage focuses on the companies, innovations and economic trends influencing global investors. Follow Khadija Saeed on Google News.

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