What happened
Shares of Chinese electric-scooter maker Niu Technologies (NIU 8.18%) were moving higher on Friday, after a bullish note from a Wall Street analyst stoked already high investor interest in the shares.
As of 1:30 p.m. EDT, Niu's shares were up about 14% from Thursday's closing price.
So what
In a new note on Friday morning, Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter raised his price target on Niu Technologies' stock to $24, from $11, and reiterated his overweight rating on the shares.
Potter said that investors have been bidding Niu's stock higher because they, like consumers, see that internet-connected electric scooters are a practical option for socially distanced urban transportation as the COVID-19 pandemic recedes.
Image source: Niu Technologies.
Potter thinks that China's market for electric bicycles and scooters will grow by double-digit percentages this year, and that China's mandated scrappage rules and rising overseas demands could accelerate Niu's sales growth further in 2021.
Potter said Niu Technologies is his top post-coronavirus stock idea right now.
Now what
Niu Technologies posted a loss of 26.4 million Chinese yuan ($3.7 million) on revenue of 232.9 million yuan ($32.9 million) in the first quarter, as sales (understandably) declined 39% amid the pandemic's peak in its home country. The company said in May that production and sales were returning to pre-pandemic levels, and that technology investors could expect its second-quarter revenue to come in between 585 million yuan and 655 million yuan, up 10% to 23% over the second quarter of 2019.
