Benzinga | Nov 5, 2021 03:39PM EDT

This Large German Investment Bank Increased Its Bet On Nio By 22% In Q3

NIO Inc. (NYSE:NIO) stock may not have had the best run in the third quarter, but the weakness presented a buying opportunity for a big investment bank.

What Happened: Germany's Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft (NYSE:DB) boosted its Nio holdings by 22% in the third quarter, a Form 13F filed with the SEC Thursday showed.

At the end of the third quarter, the German bank held 7.136 million shares of the Chinese EV maker, up from the 5.85 million shares it held at the end of the second quarter.

The value of Nio shares held by Deutsche Bank increased from $254.251 million at the end of the second quarter to $311.236 million at the end of the third quarter.

Related Link: Nio Vs. XPeng Vs. Li Auto: How October EV Deliveries Stack Up

Why It's Important: Despite the lukewarm showing by Nio's stock, the company is a big favorite among sell-side analysts.

Earlier this week, Deutsche Bank analyst Edison Yu reiterated a Buy rating on Nio shares and increased the price target from $60 to $70.

While noting that the stock has underperformed vis-?-vis its peers in the last three months, the analyst said he sees three catalysts that could change the narrative on the stock.

Nio's upcoming earnings report and guidance, due Tuesday; the November deliveries report due in early December; and the Nio Day 2021 event scheduled for Dec. 18 could serve as catalysts to propel the stock higher, he said.

NIO Price Action: Nio shares were down 1.79% at $42.35 late in Friday's session.

Related Link: Warren Buffett-Backed BYD Delivers Nearly Double The EVs Sold By Nio, XPeng, Li Auto Combined In October