XPeng's Robotics Unit Is Worth $6.3 Billion Privately — the Listed Company Is Valued at Just EUR 8.74 Billion

Morgan Stanley trimmed XPeng's Hong Kong target to HKD 70 while keeping Overweight, as its robotics arm was valued above USD 6.3 billion.

XPeng finds itself telling two stories at once, and the market is only listening to one of them. On Tuesday, the Hong Kong-listed shares slid 4.0%, landing within 0.9% of their 52-week low. The trigger was specific: Morgan Stanley analyst Tim Hsiao cut his price target on the Hong Kong line to HKD 70.00 from HKD 96.00 — a reduction of roughly a quarter. What makes the move notable is that Hsiao kept his Overweight rating intact while simultaneously raising his target for rival Nio. This is not a verdict on XPeng's viability; it reads as a recalibration of the pecking order between two Chinese EV makers.

The downgrade is the latest in a string. On September 9, UBS initiated coverage of the Hong Kong listing at HKD 47.00 and trimmed its target on the US shares to USD 12 from USD 18. Taken together, the revisions raise a question that extends well beyond XPeng: what is the dual auto-robotics vision actually worth when the core business — selling cars — is growing only modestly? August deliveries came in at 39,107 vehicles, up 4% year over year. That is growth, but not the kind that underwrites the lofty multiples of earlier years.

A Robotics Arm Worth More Than Its Parent's Float

And yet the robotics side keeps producing headlines that would suggest a different company entirely. At the end of August, XPeng disclosed that its robotics division had raised more than USD 900 million from international investors, led by IDG Capital with backing from Tencent and Alibaba. The post-money valuation of that separate entity: over USD 6.3 billion. For scale, the entire listed group currently carries a market capitalization of EUR 8.74 billion.

The humanoid robot IRON is slated for series production by the end of 2026, and the newly opened Guangzhou line runs at more than 80% automation. The gap between the privately marked robotics business and the publicly traded share price is the heart of the matter. Equity investors appear to be pricing the car business above all else — and its second-quarter figures were mixed: revenue of RMB 19.74 billion, up 8% year over year, alongside a net loss of RMB 1.34 billion.

Recent product and regulatory news has failed to shift sentiment. Roughly two weeks ago, approval for remote-controlled vehicle testing without a safety driver in Guangzhou drew attention — since then the stock has fallen 7.9%. The opening of the humanoid robot production line about a week ago likewise brought no reversal, with the shares 2.1% weaker since. Good news from the robotics segment, it seems, no longer earns a higher price.

Charging Infrastructure and a Mass-Market Push

Operationally, XPeng is pressing ahead on several fronts. In Hong Kong, the company switched on its first public megawatt charging station, built under the X-Energy banner with partner Halo Energy. The installation delivers peak charging power of one megawatt at 1,000 amperes through liquid-cooled cables. An integrated battery buffer with 400 kWh of capacity absorbs peaks, keeping the grid connection capped at 240 kW.

Alongside the infrastructure build-out, management is pushing international sales. The compact coupé-crossover L03 is set to debut in 64 markets before the year is out. Italy is slated for a market launch by year-end, with the pure-electric version starting at EUR 34,990. A range-extender variant will follow at EUR 37,990. The two-pronged powertrain strategy responds to differing charging infrastructures across target markets. The battery-electric model achieves up to 520 kilometers of WLTP range; the generator-assisted version pairs 215 kilometers of electric range with 1,017 kilometers of total range. Beyond Europe, the company is preparing new sales locations, including a flagship store in Quezon City in the Philippines.

In China, the next product premiere is imminent: official sales of the large G9L SUV begin Thursday, with presale prices starting at RMB 259,800. The vehicle is built on an 800-volt architecture and uses the second generation of the company's in-house VLA software stack for automated driving functions. A fourth-quarter product offensive is also planned, with the Mona L05 in China and overseas deliveries of the Mona L03, targeting more than 40,000 vehicles sold abroad per quarter.

Technicals Point to Persistent Weakness

The chart offers little comfort. The stock trades 15% below its 50-day moving average and 36% below its 200-day average — a picture of sustained weakness that an RSI of 34.2 frames as oversold but not as a reversal signal. On Tuesday the shares touched a fresh 52-week low of EUR 8.81, closing down 3.7% at EUR 8.92, as investors held back amid heavy research spending and intense competition in the auto sector.

Whether the coming product wave can dispel analyst skepticism will be settled by delivery figures in the months ahead — not by announcements from the robotics workshop.