Big week for LiveWire as Del Mar reservations reopen and the company goes public

The electric motorcycle division that Harley-Davidson spun off is now officially the first publicly traded company in the United States focused exclusively on electric motorcycles. At the same time, LiveWire began accepting a second round of deposits for its second model, the S2 Del Mar. In May, the company took deposits on 100 S2 Del Mar LE bikes, a limited-edition model, and deposits being accepted now put buyers in line to get one of the regular production models in the spring of 2023.

The street-tracker-styled Del Mar has an MSRP of $16,999 with an "expected ... output of 80 horsepower," a recharge time of 75 minutes from 20% to 80% on Level 2, and a city riding range of 110 miles. LiveWire has left some wiggle room with the specs.

Meanwhile, on Wall Street

Over at the New York Stock Exchange, Jochen Zeitz, CEO of Harley-Davidson and Acting CEO of LiveWire, rang the opening bell on Tuesday along with other team members as LiveWire began trading as a standalone company. The company noted it is "the first and only EV motorcycle company in the United States to list on the NYSE." Volcon went public last year, listed on the NASDAQ exchange, but it is not purely electric motorcycles, also making electric bicycles and UTVs. While Zero Motorcycles is the most established U.S. company in the electric motorcycle space, it is privately owned, as are the many smaller startups trying to enter the field.

Soulful by design 🏍

Take a ride with @LiveWireEV through the celebration of their initial listing on the NYSE 🏛 $LVWR pic.twitter.com/rCgHL3pwfu

— NYSE 🏛 (@NYSE) September 28, 2022

LiveWire went public via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), a so-called "blank check company" set up for that purpose. Harley-Davidson retains a controlling 74% interest and Taiwan motorcycle and scooter manufacturer Kymco owns about 4%. After ringing the opening bell at the NYSE, Zeitz made the rounds doing interviews with the financial media, most of whom know nothing about motorcycles, especially electric ones, but did quickly point out that the deal raised $334 million for LiveWire, significantly less than the $545 million projected when the deal was announced last December.

Zeitz is still sticking to the aggressive growth goals set for the company when the SPAC deal was announced. In another interview, he repeated the goal of LiveWire selling more than 100,000 motorcycles a year by 2026.

In announcing that it was accepting a new round of reservations for Del Mar models, LiveWire said that the initial Launch Edition models "sold out this past May in 18 minutes." Some of the financial media interviewing Zeitz noted that statement and suggested it indicated high demand for LiveWire's electric motorcycles. The reality is a bit more nuanced, however.

Nobody has actually bought a Del Mar yet. To reserve a Del Mar, a consumer only has to put down a $100 refundable deposit. Read the terms of the agreement and you'll see that not only is the buyer not obligated to purchase a Del Mar and can get a full refund just by asking, but LiveWire is also not obligated to sell the person a Del Mar. I am certain the limited Launch Edition models will sell out, but I wouldn't characterize it that way until new owners have paid the full price and received their motorcycles. Only after motorcycles are for sale broadly will we be able to get an accurate idea of demand.

Some are skeptical. Inflation, higher interest rates, and concerns about a possible recession are all factors that could weigh on sales of $22,799 LiveWire ONEs or $16,999 Del Mars. Reuters quoted Morningstar senior equity analyst Jaime Katz as saying, "People aren't going to be buying these units in 2023 if they're facing 8% or 9% inflation. They are going to want to buy groceries."

Investors also seemed skeptical. LiveWire began trading Tuesday morning under the ticker symbol LVWR and spiked to a high of $11.63 in the first half hour of trading, but from there it has drifted downward, finishing yesterday's regular trading session at $7.35, about 37 percent below that high set Tuesday morning. The stock trended downward Wednesday despite the broader market rebounding sharply higher.

LiveWire has set some ambitious growth goals and Zeitz says the company has the funding it needs to pursue them. Now it remains to be seen if the company can execute the plan in the face of the challenges before it.