1 Reason to Be Very, Very Excited About Rivian Stock Right Now

Key Points

• Shares of the EV maker remain very cheap compared to the competition.

• Yet, the company is about to experience its biggest growth spurt in years.

• 10 stocks we like better than Rivian Automotive ›

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: RIVN) stock trades at a sizable discount to electric-vehicle (EV) competitors like Tesla and Lucid Group. That discount is due to the company's lackluster growth rates in recent quarters. But looking ahead to 2026, Rivian's growth rates should skyrocket. And there's one major reason for this impending growth spurt.

Why does Rivian trade at a discount to Lucid Group and Tesla?

According to many valuation metrics, Rivian trades at a sizable discount to other electric vehicle (EV) makers like Tesla and Lucid. Rivian, for example, trades at a price-to-sales ratio of around 3. Lucid shares, meanwhile, trade at around 7 times sales, with Tesla stock trading at an astounding 15 times sales.

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Why does Rivian trade at such a steep discount? There are two primary reasons.

First, Rivian's historical and projected growth rates leave a lot to be desired. Since 2025 began, Rivian has grown revenues by just 3%. Lucid, meanwhile, has grown sales by around 15%. Looking ahead, Rivian is expected to grow sales by just 6% this fiscal year. Lucid, meanwhile, is projected to grow sales by around 61% this fiscal year.

Based on these growth statistics, it seems reasonable for Rivian to trade at a discount to Lucid. But here's where things get a little weird. Since 2025, Tesla has actually seen its sales decline by 5.1%. This fiscal year, Tesla is expected to experience a total sales decline of around 4.9%. Why then are Tesla shares trading at such a premium?

This brings us to the second reason why Rivian trades at a discount to competitors like Lucid and Tesla. The company doesn't have a clear path toward competing in the global autonomous robotaxi market. Experts like Cathie Wood believe the global robotaxi market could eventually be worth $10 trillion. Tesla has a clear path toward participating through its robotaxi division, which launched in Austin, Texas earlier this year. Lucid, meanwhile, recently partnered with Uber Technologies to supply its robotaxi division.

What about Rivian? So far, we haven't heard much about the company's aspirations in this category, potentially leading the market to undervalue the stock. But I predict that Rivian's growth rates should pick up aggressively next year regardless of the company's current lackluster growth rates or its inability to get involved in the robotaxi hype over the short term.

Image source: Getty Images.

Rivian should see sales explode higher in 2026 and 2027

One of the biggest challenges for an EV maker is getting affordable models to market. And by affordable, we're talking about a starting price of under $50,000. Nearly 70% of all U.S. car buyers are looking for a vehicle under this price threshold for their next purchase. Lucid doesn't currently have any models priced under $50,000, severely limiting its growth potential. Tesla, meanwhile, has only two affordable models: the Model 3 and Model Y. Amazingly, these two models account for more than 90% of its total vehicle sales!

As Tesla has proven, getting affordable models to market is critical for achieving mass scale. Lucid is still a couple of years away from this milestone. But Rivian should get its first affordable model to market by early 2026, with two additional affordable models to follow. This has the potential to transform the business. Again, more than 90% of Tesla's sales comes from its two affordable models, and Rivian expects to launch three over the next 18 months.

So, while Rivian doesn't have much immediate exposure to the robotaxi market -- an opportunity that should persist for decades to come, giving Rivian plenty of time to catch up down the road -- expect the company's growth rates to pick up considerably in 2026 and 2027. In hindsight, the company's valuation discount versus Tesla and Lucid could be a giant mistake by the market.

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Ryan Vanzo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla and Uber Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.