Investor's Corner
Tesla Shorts come out just in time for Summer
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) shorts are coming out, and their vocal stances against the electric automaker are just in time for Summer. Temperatures are rising, so naturally, the shorts are appearing from thin air, just as Tesla’s momentum is building to finish out the second quarter of 2020.
The market will always have those looking to capitalize on a successful company’s downfall. The problem is, Tesla is not experiencing a downfall, nor is it experiencing any issues that really have to do with the automaker’s integrity as a company. Tesla is experiencing some critiques with some problems within the vehicle’s touchscreens, and some subjective opinions regarding build quality, but is that really enough to derail the momentum that the company has compounded over the past 6 months?
In my opinion, no.
However, there are a series of financial analysts who claim that TSLA is going to fall from grace, and its $1,000 stock price, which fluctuates day-to-day, will be a short-lived phenomenon that cannot hold. The analysts claim that Tesla is merely another hot car company with a fun business model and new technology, and that’s what is making it successful. However, these analysts fail to realize that Tesla is much bigger than just a company that builds sustainable cars. It is an entire tech business, focused on vehicles, energy, and sustainability, and the $1,000 stock price it holds is wholly justified.
A name that may be familiar to the TSLA stockholders is Adam Jonas. The Morgan Stanley analyst has been a notorious TSLA critic, who has continued to revise his price targets and ratings for the stock. Jonas’ current stock advice for TSLA is a $650 PT with a “Sell” position.
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While Jonas does recognize Tesla as a “tech” company and not just an automaker, his most recent note to investors indicated that the company holds a series of increased risks because “proven/mature companies” have a lesser degree of execution risk.
It is pretty interesting to hear someone who follows Tesla firmly suggest that the company isn’t proven. The automotive side of Tesla may be young with only twelve years of car sales, but it’s more than proven because everything that Elon Musk has said has become a reality.
It goes all the way back to Tesla’s Master Plan. Make an expensive car, use that money to build a cheaper car, and then use that money to create an even cheaper car.
2008 Roadster > Tesla Model S/X > Tesla Model 3
It is all right there. We could break it down further by talking about Elon Musk’s goal of building world-class automobiles that operate in an environmentally-friendly fashion that aren’t “slow and boring” as he once referred to previous battery-powered machines.
It is more than proven that Tesla is reliable, or mature, even though its a young company. It has repeatedly dug itself out of holes, built upon weaknesses, and risen from the dead in times where it really seemed like things wouldn’t pick back up. For a refresher, watch a documentary called “Revenge of the Electric Car.”
Another analyst is Gordon Johnson, the founder of GLJ Research. In an interview with Benzinga, Johnson talked about his stance on TSLA, which he said, “couldn’t be more bearish.”
Johnson points to Tesla’s lineup of vehicles as the indicator of why he feels the company isn’t an excellent pick for investing.
“Initially it was the S and the X that were going to dominate in the luxury market. That didn’t happen. Then it was going to be the Model 3, which was their mass-market car, which took them to profitability. That didn’t happen. Then it was the Model Y, right? They won’t even tell you what orders are on the Model Y.”
Tesla is coming off of three straight profitable quarters. Q3 and Q4 2019 were both profitable, and Q1 2020 was the first time in company history that the company was profitable in the first three months of the year. The Model Y didn’t begin deliveries until March, so the Model 3, while it did have some non-profitable quarters, led the company to three straight profits over the last three quarters.
As far as the S and X, electric cars were somewhat taboo when both of those vehicles were released. It wasn’t a huge market like it is today, and it was Tesla’s first real attempt at creating an everyday car. While I think Johnson has a point, the S and the X still manage to be a central part of Tesla’s fleet today, constantly receiving updates for performance and battery tech through software upgrades.
But Johnson turned his sights onto the Cybertruck. Claiming the $50 deposit (which is actually $100) is just a ploy to obtain high preorder numbers, he doesn’t even think the car is street legal. This is interesting considering it has traveled on public roads several times, and the IIHS is considering a “no side mirrors” law that would allow the Cybertruck to keep its current design.
Then Johnson mentioned the Semi. “It’s almost like the Tesla Semi,” he said, comparing the commercial vehicle to the Cybertruck. “…Where they were taking preorders for $100,000 three years ago, and they still haven’t made the car.”
The issue with this is, the Semi has always been in the plans. Yes, it wasn’t in production, but it is about to begin its first volume phase in Fremont. The issue was battery production shortages, which evidently no longer seem to be an issue because of Musk’s indication regarding the Semi’s imminent production. It isn’t like Tesla would keep the money from preorders if they scrapped the Semi plans.
Analysts are entitled to their opinions, of course. But there needs to be more education regarding their decisions, in my opinion. There is a lot of proof that Tesla is doing a lot of great things, and it starts with recognizing the mission that the company has set out to achieve. No automaker is perfect, and Tesla never claimed to be. It has had its problems just like any other car company, and it will work through them. Touchscreens fail, batteries need a replacement, tires need patching every now and again. But these issues aren’t exclusive to Tesla, they happen to every manufacturer’s cars at some point or another.
Temperatures are rising, the A/C is cranked up, and the Shorts are out. It’s Summertime, ladies, and gentlemen.
Disclosure: I have no ownership in shares of TSLA and have no plans to initiate any positions within 72 hours.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) has had a few weeks of overwhelmingly bullish events, and it is inciting several analysts to change their price targets as they expect the stock to potentially go Plaid Mode in the near future.
Over the past week, Tesla has not only posted record deliveries for a single quarter, but it has also rolled out its most robust Full Self-Driving (Supervised) update in a year. The new version is more capable than ever before.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.1 first impressions: Robotaxi-like features arrive
However, these are not the only things moving the company’s overall consensus on Wall Street toward a more bullish tone. There are, in fact, several things that Tesla has in the works that are inciting stronger expectations from analysts in New York.
TD Cowen
TD Cowen increased its price target for Tesla shares from $374 to $509 and gave the stock a ‘Buy’ rating, based on several factors.
Initially, Tesla’s positive deliveries report for Q3 set a bullish tone, which TD Cowen objectively evaluated and recognized as a strong sign. Additionally, the company’s firm stance on ensuring CEO Elon Musk is paid is a positive, as it keeps him with Tesla for more time.
Elon Musk: Trillionaire Tesla pay package is about influence, not wealth
Musk, who achieved each of the tranches on his last pay package, could obtain the elusive title as the world’s first-ever trillionaire, granted he helps Tesla grow considerably over the next decade.
Stifel
Stifel also increased its price target on Tesla from $440 to $483, citing the improvements Tesla made with its Full Self-Driving suite.
The rollout of FSD v14.1 has been a major step forward for the company. Although it’s in its early stages, Musk has said there will be improved versions coming within the next two weeks.
Stifel raises Tesla price target by 9.8% over FSD, Robotaxi advancements
Analysts at the firm also believe the company has a chance to push an Unsupervised version of FSD by the end of the year, but this seems like it’s out of the question currently.
It broke down the company’s FSD suite as worth $213 per share, while Robotaxi and Optimus had a $140 per share and $29 per share analysis, respectively.
Stifel sees Tesla as a major player not only in the self-driving industry but also in AI as a whole, which is something Musk has truly pushed for this year.
UBS
While many firms believe the company is on its way to doing great things and that stock prices will rise from their current level of roughly $430, other firms see it differently.
UBS said it still holds its ‘Sell’ rating on Tesla shares, but it did increase its price target from $215 to $247.
It said this week in a note to investors that it adjusted higher because of the positive deliveries and its potential value with AI and autonomy. However, it also remains cautious on the stock, especially considering the risks in Q4, as nobody truly knows how deliveries will stack up.
In the last month, Tesla shares are up 24 percent.
Investor's Corner
Stifel raises Tesla price target by 9.8% over FSD, Robotaxi advancements
Stifel also maintained a “Buy” rating for the electric vehicle maker.
Investment firm Stifel has raised its price target for Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares to $483 from $440 over increased confidence in the company’s self-driving and Robotaxi programs. The new price target suggests an 11.5% upside from Tesla’s closing price on Tuesday.
Stifel also maintained a “Buy” rating despite acknowledging that Tesla’s timeline for fully unsupervised driving may be ambitious.
Building confidence
In a note to clients, Stifel stated that it believes “Tesla is making progress with modest advancements in its Robotaxi network and FSD,” as noted in a report from Investing.com. The firm expects unsupervised FSD to become available for personal use in the U.S. by the end of 2025, with a wider ride-hailing rollout potentially covering half of the U.S. population by year-end.
Stifel also noted that Tesla’s Robotaxi fleet could expand from “tiny to gigantic” within a short time frame, possibly making a material financial impact to the company by late 2026. The firm views Tesla’s vision-based approach to autonomy as central to this long-term growth, suggesting that continued advancements could unlock new revenue streams across both consumer and mobility sectors.
Tesla’s FSD goals still ambitious
While Stifel’s tone remains optimistic, the firm’s analysts acknowledged that Tesla’s aggressive autonomy timeline may face execution challenges. The note described the 2025 unsupervised FSD target as “a stretch,” though still achievable in the medium term.
“We believe Tesla is making progress with modest advancements in its Robotaxi network and FSD. The company has high expectations for its camera-based approach including; 1) Unsupervised FSD to be available for personal use in the United States by year-end 2025, which appears to be a stretch but seems more likely in the medium term; 2) that it will ‘probably have ride hailing in probably half of the populations of the U.S. by the end of the year’,” the firm noted.
Investor's Corner
Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirms bullish view on Tesla after record Q3 deliveries
The firm reiterated its Overweight rating and $355 price target.
Cantor Fitzgerald is maintaining its bullish outlook on Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) following the company’s record-breaking third quarter of 2025.
The firm reiterated its Overweight rating and $355 price target, citing strong delivery results driven by a rush of consumer purchases ahead of the end of the federal tax credit on September 30.
On Tesla’s vehicle deliveries in Q3 2025
During the third quarter of 2025, Tesla delivered a total of 497,099 vehicles, significantly beating analyst expectations of 443,079 vehicles. As per Cantor Fitzgerald, this was likely affected by customers rushing at the end of Q3 to purchase an EV due to the end of the federal tax credit, as noted in an Investing.com report.
“On 10/2, TSLA pre-announced that it delivered 497,099 vehicles in 3Q25 (its highest quarterly delivery in company history), significantly above Company consensus of 443,079, and above 384,122 in 2Q25. This was due primarily to a ‘push forward effect’ from consumers who rushed to purchase or lease EVs ahead of the $7,500 EV tax credit expiring on 9/30,” the firm wrote in its note.
A bright spot in Tesla Energy
Cantor Fitzgerald also highlighted that while Tesla’s full-year production and deliveries would likely fall short of 2024’s 1.8 million total, Tesla’s energy storage business remains a bright spot in the company’s results.
“Tesla also announced that it had deployed 12.5 GWh of energy storage products in 3Q25, its highest in company history vs. our estimate/Visible Alpha consensus of 11.5/10.9 GWh (and vs. ~6.9 GWh in 3Q24). Tesla’s Energy Storage has now deployed more products YTD than all of last year, which is encouraging. We expect Energy Storage revenue to surpass $12B this year, and to account for ~15% of total revenue,” the firm stated.
Tesla’s strong Q3 results have helped lift its market capitalization to $1.47 trillion as of writing. The company also teased a new product reveal on X set for October 7, which the firm stated could serve as another near-term catalyst.
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