(Yicai) March 21 -- Li Auto lowered its sales outlook for the first quarter after the founder of the Chinese electric vehicle startup admitted hasty forecasting related to a pricey minivan model called Li Mega.

First-quarter deliveries could tally from 76,000 to 78,000 vehicles, revised from the previous outlook of 100,000 to 103,000 units, due to fewer-than-expected orders, the Beijing-based seller of Li L8 and L9 sport utility vehicles announced after the Hong Kong bourse closed today.

The downgraded outlook is linked to the launch of Li Mega early this month. "We want to acknowledge that the operating strategy of Li Mega was mis-paced," said Li Xiang, the founder and chairman of Li Auto. The starting price of the electric multi-purpose vehicle is CNY559,8000 (USD77,760), making it the most expensive product the startup has ever launched.

"We planned operations of Li Mega as if the model had already entered the 1-to-10 scaling phase, while in fact, we were still in the nascent 0-to-1 business validation period," the chief said, admitting an excessive emphasis on sales volume and competition. "We will lower our delivery expectations and restore sustainable growth by refocusing on enhancing user value instead of competition, while maintaining operating efficiency," Li added.

LatePost reported that in two weeks, Li Mega received around 4,000 orders, so it could be difficult to reach the annual target of 70,000 to 80,000 units.

Last year, Li Auto almost tripled its sales to 376,000 units, ranking first among domestic electric vehicle startups. Moreover, the firm became profitable for the first time, earning a net profit of CNY11.8 billion (USD1.6 billion) while revenue grew almost three times to CNY123.9 billion (USD17.2 billion), according to its earnings report released last month.

The Nasdaq-listed shares of Li Auto [NASDAQ: LI] were 9.4 percent down at USD34.08 in pre-market trading as of 7.59 a.m. Its Hong Kong-listed equity [HKG: 2015] closed 1.1 percent higher at HKD135.10 (USD17) today.

Editor: Emmi Laine