Shares shifted sharply lower as Niu Technologies dropped -10.2% to $2.55 on Monday morning after the Chinese electric scooter maker reported first-quarter 2026 results that delivered impressive top-line growth but deepening losses — a combination that spooked a market already wary of the company's inability to turn sales into profit.
• China Sales Are Booming, but It's Not Enough to Pay the Bills
Total sales volume reached about 261,000 units, up 28.7% year over year, while revenue rose 33.4% to RMB 909.5 million.
China scooter revenue rose 42% year over year to RMB 774 million, driven by higher sales volume and improved revenue per e-scooter. Yet Niu reported a GAAP net loss of RMB 94 million, with a net loss margin of 10.3%, compared with a net loss of RMB 39 million and a 5.7% net loss margin a year earlier. In other words, losses more than doubled even as revenue surged — a red flag that growth is being bought, not earned.
• Spending Is Growing Faster Than Revenue
Operating expenses increased 60% year over year to RMB 264 million.
Selling and marketing expenses rose to RMB 180 million alone, suggesting Niu is spending aggressively to push into smaller Chinese cities and clear overseas inventory. Gross margin was 17.4%, up just 0.1 percentage point from the prior-year period — essentially flat. When a company grows revenue 33% but can barely budge the share of each sale it keeps as profit, the path to breakeven stretches further.
• The Overseas Business Is Shrinking, Not Growing
International sales totaled 13,686 units, down 32.4% year over year.
Niu is working through elevated micro-mobility inventory in Europe and the U.S. and warned that the strategy will weigh on micro-mobility contribution margins for the year. That means the higher-margin international business — the one supposed to diversify Niu beyond China — is a drag, not a driver.
• The Market Has Seen This Movie Before
The previous earnings release on March 16, 2026, which showed full-year revenue growth and narrowing losses, was followed by an -11.39% reaction. Today's sell-off echoes that pattern. The market cap sits at roughly $223 million with a 52-week range of $2.71–$5.67, meaning the stock is trading near its floor. Management guided Q2 revenue to RMB 1.57–1.82 billion, implying 25%–45% growth , but until investors see proof that revenue growth can translate into profits — not just bigger losses — the discount is likely to persist.