Li Auto Q2 revenue dips 15.1% to RMB25.7B; net loss hits RMB1.7B as vehicle margin slumps to 9.4%

Li Auto reported unaudited Q2 2026 results on Aug. 26, with total revenues of RMB25.7 billion (US$3.8 billion), down 15.1% year over year from RMB30.2 billion but up 11.7% from Q1's RMB23.0 billion. Vehicle sales were RMB24.1 billion (US$3.5 billion), down 16.7% year over year and up 11.8% sequentially. Quarterly deliveries were 98,330 vehicles, down 11.5% year over year; net loss was RMB1.7 billion (US$251.3 million), versus net income of RMB1.1 billion a year ago, and non-GAAP net loss was RMB1.5 billion.

Gross margin was 11.0%, down from 20.1% in Q2 2025 and up from 7.9% in Q1 2026; vehicle margin was 9.4%, versus 19.4% and 6.1%. Loss from operations was RMB2.3 billion, compared with income of RMB827.0 million a year earlier, and operating margin was negative 9.0%. Operating expenses were RMB5.1 billion, down 2.0% year over year and up 6.9% sequentially; R&D expenses were RMB2.8 billion, and selling, general and administrative expenses were RMB2.3 billion, down 16.2% year over year.

Other sales and services revenue rose 17.6% to RMB1.6 billion. As of June 30, Li Auto had 495 retail stores in 160 cities, 536 servicing centers and authorized shops in 220 cities, and 4,097 super charging stations with 22,593 stalls. By July 31, it had 490 stores in 159 cities, 536 servicing centers in 219 cities, and 4,141 super charging stations with 22,841 stalls. Cash position was RMB87.5 billion, operating cash flow was positive RMB15.0 million, and free cash flow was negative RMB1.3 billion.

In June, Li Auto launched the all-new Li L8 in two trims: Li L8 Ultra at RMB369,800 and Li L8 Livis at RMB429,800. Standard equipment includes four zero-gravity seats, a 72.7 kWh 5C battery, the third-generation range extender, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8797 chip, steer-by-wire and rear-wheel steering; Ultra adds third-generation dual-chamber, dual-valve Magic Carpet Air Suspension and a MACH M100 chip, while Livis adds an 800V active suspension, electro-mechanical brake and dual MACH M100 chips. In July, the new Li L6 launched at RMB249,800 with an all-aluminum suspension, dual-valve CDC, the MACH M100 chip, upgraded perception hardware and a 51 kWh LFP super charging battery. June's Livis Day showcased MACH Mind-Pro, MACH Mind-Edge, MACH VLA and the world's first dynamic dataflow AI chip, the MACH M100. July deliveries were 30,468 vehicles.

For Q3 2026, Li Auto forecasts deliveries of 95,000 to 100,000 vehicles and total revenues of RMB26.6 billion to RMB28.0 billion. Under the US$1.0 billion buyback program announced March 24, 2026, the company repurchased 41,232,100 Class A ordinary shares on the HKEX for HK$2.1 billion and 9,487,026 ADSs on Nasdaq for US$150.9 million in Q2. Cumulative repurchases reached about 91.7 million ordinary shares, or about US$631.5 million. CFO Tie Li said the Q2 gross margin improvement to 11.0% benefited from the all-new Li L9 launch, and he expects further margin expansion in the second half as the product mix optimizes with higher sales of the Livis trim and the launch of refreshed BEV models and Li i9.