Photo: The White House via Wikimedia

Lordstown Motors Corp (RIDE) shares fell about 9.5% on Thursday and dropped below $5 a share for the first time ever, hitting a new 52-week low.

What Happened: The sharp decline in Lordstown Motors stock came after the pre-production electric vehicle maker’s executives participated in the company's annual shareholder meeting, which lasted just ten minutes. 

The shareholder meeting ended quickly after Chairwoman Angela Strand reiterated many of the company’s previously announced plans. 

Earlier this month, Lordstown Motors executives told investors in a post-earnings call that it is on track to begin limited production of its Endurance EV pickup truck by the end of September and is in talks with multiple partners that could lead to additional capital infusion.

Commercial delivery of Endurance will begin in the first quarter to selected early customers followed by commercial deliveries in the second quarter.

Why It Matters: The new low in Lordstown Motors shares comes months after the electric vehicle startup came under regulatory scrutiny following short-seller Hindenburg Research’s report that the company was misleading investors and overstating the demand for the Endurance.

The company formed a special board committee to investigate the short seller’s allegations, found some company statements around truck pre-orders were inaccurate but rejected the report as false and misleading in several aspects.

The company had in June issued a grim warning that, without additional funding, it couldn’t scale commercial truck production and had serious doubts about whether it could survive the year. 

Price Action: Shares of the company, which have declined about 75% so far this year, closed 9.5% lower at $4.77 on Thursday.