​The electric vehicle boom is changing how cars get made in America, and Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) is leading the charge with smart tech moves. This California company has racked up wins heading into 2026. In December 2025, Rivian showed off its own custom chip and new self-driving tech at its first Autonomy & AI Day stuff they built over two years that works separately from their Volkswagen deal. Just before that, they announced $330,000 in school partnerships with Georgia Tech, University of Georgia, and others to train workers for their $5 billion Georgia factory. On the money side, Rivian posted $24 million in gross profit for Q3 2025, their second profit quarter with $1.56 billion in sales, up 78% from last year. Their big Volkswagen joint venture kicked off in November 2024 at $5.8 billion total, setting up Rivian’s software for VW cars by 2027.

Yet right in the middle of this progress, Rivian agreed to pay $250 million to settle a lawsuit from investors. They said the company hid real costs of making R1 trucks during its 2021 IPO, which led to a surprise 20% price jump in March 2022. That news tanked the stock 39% in 10 days and cost shareholders billions.

Although many assume that such lawsuits negatively impact a company, let’s take a closer look at whether that’s really the case, including from a financial perspective.

Behind Rivian Chart: Revenue, Profit, and Loss

Rivian Automotive shares are trading around $18.53-$19.45, with a market cap sitting at about $23.5-23.9 billion. Over the past year, the stock has bounced around quite a bit, hitting a low of $10.36 in early 2025 and climbing to a high of $22.69 in December. That’s a solid 42% jump year-over-year and an even more impressive 45% gain over the past three months, beating most of the market. This comeback story is fueled by better-than-expected earnings and big tech moves, like showing off its custom silicon chip and self-driving platform at the December 2025 Autonomy & AI Day.

When Rivian dropped its Q3 2025 numbers on November 4, they lost $0.65 per share, which sounds bad until you realize Wall Street expected them to lose $0.72. But the real win was on the revenue side. Rivian pulled in $1.56 billion that quarter, crushing the $1.46 billion estimate and growing a massive 78% compared to last year. Even better, they posted their first-ever consolidated gross profit of $24 million, a huge turnaround from losing $392 million on gross profit the year before. Though the car-making side of the business still lost $130 million.

Based on that strong quarter, Rivian’s management revised their forecasts for the full year. They now expect to deliver 66,000-68,000 vehicles in 2026, and while adjusted EBITDA remains negative, the loss is narrowing to between $2 billion and $2.25 billion. Looking ahead, analysts think Rivian will continue improving, with revenue projected to grow from $5.4 billion in 2025 to over $6 billion in 2026 as the R2 SUV launches. ​

Rivian has about $7.1 billion in cash, which gives it plenty of room to pay for the R2 launch and finish building its huge Georgia factory without rushing back to the market for more money. The company is still losing money overall, but its first quarter of positive gross profit is a clear sign it's getting closer to making each vehicle profitably. The stock isn't cheap yet investors are still paying up because they're betting the R2 and future software and self‑driving features will turn into strong, recurring revenue.​

Analyst Price Targets and Doubts

Wall Street is still giving Rivian some benefit of the doubt, even though the company is not making net profits yet. A big part of that confidence comes from its $5.8 billion deal with Volkswagen, which brings in funding and puts Rivian's software at the center of VW's future EV plans. For many analysts, that partnership is a sign Rivian is more than just another cash-burning EV startup

According to Barchart, the overall rating from Wall Street is basically a "Hold," which means most analysts want to see how the R2 launch plays out before getting fully excited. Out of 26 analysts, 9 call it a "Buy," 13 say "Hold," and 4 say "Sell." The average price target is around $16.58, a bit below where the stock trades today, but the most bullish calls go up to $25, implying roughly 30% upside if things go right

Rivian Legal Shadow Cleared Before Looking Ahead

Rivian agreed to pay $250 million to settle a class action lawsuit from investors who claimed the company misled them about the true manufacturing costs of its R1 vehicles during its massive 2021 IPO. The story began when Rivian suddenly announced a massive 20% price hike on its trucks and SUVs in March 2022, just months after going public.Investors felt tricked, saying management knew the prices wouldn’t work but stayed quiet to make the IPO look good. When the news broke, Rivian's stock crashed 39% over just ten days, wiping out billions in market value as shareholders felt the company had pulled a “bait-and-switch” on both customers and investors.

By settling, Rivian avoided a long, costly trial that could have drained more cash and distracted management. The $250 million payout uses about 3-5% of its cash reserves, a manageable hit for a company now reporting $1.56 billion in quarterly revenue and aiming for positive gross margins. Investors who bought shares between the IPO and the March 2022 price hike can now file claims, with payouts expected to be distributed soon.

Conclusion

Rivian is showing real signs of progress with its first consolidated gross profit of $24 million in Q3 2025, the $5.8 billion Volkswagen joint venture now live to fund software scaling, and R2 production ramping for a 2026 launch  all while sitting on $7.1 billion in cash. Settling this lawsuit for $250 million could actually help by wiping the slate clean of three years of legal noise, letting the team focus entirely on execution and rebuilding investor confidence through results rather than court battles. For shareholders, the short-term cash hit of 3-5% is minor compared to the long-term upside: avoiding trial risks that could erupt into billions, and freeing up energy for the R2 breakout and autonomy revenue that analysts see driving 2026 revenue past $6 billion turning past pain into future gains.

Benzinga Disclaimer: This article is from an unpaid external contributor. It does not represent Benzinga’s reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy.

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