Goldman Sachs picks stocks to ride the EV wave, giving one upside of 120%

Published Tue, Feb 7 202311:48 PM ESTUpdated Mon, Mar 13 20236:12 AM EDT

Goldman Sachs says the development of electric vehicles — and the companies involved in this — are set to see "considerable growth" through 2030. "We expect technological innovation, and we see considerable growth through 2030 in the EV ecosystem, and think profit pools in the automobile industry will be transformed," Goldman analysts wrote in a Jan. 30 report. They added that EV-related operating profits are set to grow from $2 billion in 2020 to $133 billion in 2030. According to Goldman, this EV ecosystem includes auto manufacturers, battery makers, software developers, and companies involved in charging infrastructure and power semiconductors. It added that it expects EVs to make up 33% of global new vehicle sales by 2030. "Although growth will ease as the market expands, EVs still represent the strongest growth potential within the automobile industry," Goldman analysts wrote. The investment bank said it believes six stocks stand to benefit the most from the increased adoption of EVs. Four of the stocks are buy-rated by Goldman: Tesla and battery-makers Freyr Battery , SK Innovation and Samsung SDI . "We think these companies should be able to tap [Inflation Reduction Act] opportunities as the battery market becomes more concentrated," Goldman wrote. Upside of 120% Goldman is also buy-rated Chinese EV maker Nio and gives it gives massive potential upside — among the highest of all of its stock picks in the report. Goldman gave both its s tock listed in the U.S. and Hong Kong upside of around 120%. Describing Nio as one of China's leading EV startups, it says that the automaker's positioning of new models is "strategic." It noted that Nio's ET7 sedan, ET5 sedan and Ec7 SUV were well-positioned to compete with various models from other automakers including Mercedes , BMW and Tesla. "We see risk-reward for the stock as skewed to the upside," Goldman added. Nio's stock listed in the U.S. is up around 12% year-to-date. — CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.