Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) in January delivered 5,379 units of the Li ONE, its only model, up 355.8 percent year-on-year but was down 12% from December's 6,126 units.

Cumulative deliveries of the model have reached 38,976 since the Li ONE's launch, according to data released by the company today.

Launched in April 2019, the Li ONE is positioned as a luxury mid-size SUV.

It is the first all-electric SUV in China with extended-range technology that can be charged or refueled.

Its battery pack has an available capacity of 37.2Wh, with a maximum battery range of 180km and a range extender range of up to 520km.

The Li ONE sold 33,457 units in 2020, surpassing the Nio ES6, WM Motor EX5 and BYD Tang DM, making it the number one selling new energy SUV in China for four consecutive months.

On Monday, Deutsche Bank analysts led by Edison Yu initiated coverage on Li Auto with a Hold rating and a price target of $35, representing an 8.5 percent upside potential from Friday's close.

Li Auto has proven itself to be a focused and efficient operator as demonstrated by its margin/cash flow performance and strong sales, despite having a meaningfully smaller store footprint and social media following than Nio and Xpeng Motors, the analysts said in a note sent to investors on Monday.

They went on by saying that Li Auto chose to differentiate its offering by using an extended range hybrid powertrain to addresses many of the practical shortcomings of BEVs while keeping costs low.

However, Li Auto's management understands BEV is the endgame, and "we suspect the company may already be accelerating developmental efforts," the report said.

Deutsche Bank initiates coverage on Li Auto with Hold rating and $35 price target