Livent on Tuesday posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit and bolstered its 2022 revenue forecast as it benefited from higher demand for lithium used in electric-vehicle batteries, sending its shares surging 14%.
The Philadelphia-based company now expects annual revenue of $755-million to $835-million from its previous forecast of $540-million to $600-million.
Lithium prices have hit record highs as demand for the EV battery metal has surged amid global efforts to decarbonize automobiles to tackle climate change.
Earlier this month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said lithium is "a limiting factor" in the growth of EVs as he encouraged companies to enter the lithium sector to take advantage of higher prices.
Livent posted a net profit of $53.2-million, or 28 c a share, for the first quarter, compared with a loss of $800 000, or 1 c a share, a year earlier
Excluding items, the company earned 21 cents per share, beating analysts' expectations of 14c a share, according to Refinitiv data.
"Strong lithium demand growth has continued in 2022," said Livent CEO Paul Graves in a statement, adding that Livent saw higher realized prices across its entire product portfolio.
Revenue rose 56% to $143.5-million. Analysts on average were expecting revenue of $140.15-million.