According to Wedbush, Tesla is sitting at a “crossroads” as it nears its Q1 2025 Earnings Call on Tuesday.

Although the company’s Earnings Calls have been primarily focused on the financials and accomplishments of the past quarter, Tesla is approaching this one differently.

Tesla has even said that this Earnings Call will feature a “company update,” and as most believe it will detail plans for future models and production timelines, others have different expectations and beliefs over what could be said.

Tesla still on track to release more affordable models in 1H25

Wedbush’s Dan Ives believes Tesla is at a crossroads and outlined his six biggest concerns for the company since CEO Elon Musk took on a role within the White House at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE):

1. Tesla has now unfortunately become a political symbol globally of the Trump Administration/DOGE
2. Tesla’s stock has been crushed since Trump stepped back into the White House
3. Brand damage to Musk/Tesla resulted in a terrible 1Q delivery number, with much lower 2025 deliveries on the horizon
4. Protests and violence against Tesla dealerships/owners have erupted around the globe
5. 25% auto tariffs have been enacted, delaying future lower-cost models for Tesla, even though Musk is vocally against the tariffs for obvious reasons
6. Potentially 15%-20% permanent demand destruction for future Tesla buyers due to the brand damage Musk has created with DOGE

Ives has held onto the idea that Musk’s involvement has made Tesla synonymous with the Trump administration, but that only seems to be true for those who share ideologies that oppose what the White House is doing.

Others are able to differentiate between the two, noting that Tesla is not a Trump organization, and vice versa.

Of course, there are negative sides to Musk splitting his time between the two and having ties to the President. Politically, it is hard to appease everyone.

Despite this, Wedbush’s Ives said the firm still remains bullish on Tesla:

“So why stay bullish? It’s a great question. We believe Tesla along with Nvidia are two of the most disruptive technology companies on the globe over the coming years. The unparalleled innovation, engineering scale, autonomous roadmap, and robotics future will unleash massive valuation upside over the coming years in our view. BUT….Musk needs to leave the government, take a major step back on DOGE, and get back to being CEO of Tesla full-time. Tesla is Musk and Musk is Tesla….and anyone that thinks the brand damage Musk has inflicted is not a real thing….spend some time speaking to car buyers in the US, Europe, and Asia…you will think differently after those discussions.”

Ives said that Musk needs to lay out the timing and rollout plans for the unsupervised Full Self-Driving and for the affordable vehicle platform, which was set for release in the first half of the year.

Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) stock price target was slashed 15% by Barclays to $275 from $325. Barclays analysts cited weaker fundamentals and challenges in achieving 2025 unit volume growth as reasons for cutting Tesla’s price target. The firm retained an equal weight rating on TSLA, noting that CEO Elon Musk could shift sentiment during the upcoming Q1 earnings call.

Barclays believes Musk’s discussion of Tesla’s robotaxi launch in June could overshadow short-term issues, stating, “good narrative could outweigh weak fundamentals.” The investment bank also commented that Musk’s work with the Trump Administration has become a “code red situation” for Tesla.

Musk’s involvement with President Trump and his administration has caused some waves in the perception of the Tesla brand. Other investment firms also see Musk’s work with the U.S. government as negative for Tesla.

Wedbush Securities’ Dan Ives urged Musk to prioritize his CEO role over government involvement. “We also would expect Musk to address his role in the Trump Administration and will be asked about if he plans to stay in an advisory role for the White House,” Ives said. The Wedbush analyst emphasized that Musk must “lay out the timeline/hard facts” for autonomous vehicles, robotics, and production on Tesla’s “new lower-cost vehicle.”

“We view this as a fork in the road time: if Musk leaves the White House, there will be permanent brand damage… But Tesla will have its most important asset and strategic thinker back as full-time CEO to drive the vision, and the long-term story will not be altered. If Musk chooses to stay with the Trump White House, it could change the future of Tesla, and brand damage will grow. A huge week ahead for Musk, Tesla, and investors,” Ives wrote in a note.

Tesla’s stock has faced pressure from Musk’s government ties, tariffs, and lower-than-expected deliveries. However, Benchmark analyst Mickey Legg countered the pessimism, arguing that current concerns over Tesla are exaggerated given the company’s future prospects.

“We believe the recent stock pullback and sales declines, while significant, are overblown considering the near-term issues impacting the company and the scope of opportunities around the corner. After appreciating over 90% to a high of $488 after the Presidential election, the stock has pulled back to sub-$300 levels,” Legg wrote in a note earlier this month.

The Benchmark analyst urged investors to focus on catalysts like robotaxis and new vehicle models. As Tesla’s earnings approach, Musk’s leadership and strategic clarity will be pivotal in addressing investor concerns and shaping the company’s trajectory.

Tesla has doubled down on its potential launch date for the Robotaxi ride-hailing platform, which will utilize the Cybercab and other vehicles in its lineup to offer driverless rides in Austin, Texas.

Tesla said earlier this year that it was in talks with the City of Austin to launch its first Robotaxi rides, and it planned to launch the platform in June.

This has been a widely discussed timeline in the community, with some confident in the company’s ability to offer it based on the progress of the Full Self-Driving suite.

However, others are skeptical of it based on Tesla’s history of meeting timelines, especially regarding its rollout of FSD.

Nevertheless, Tesla was asked when it would be able to offer Robotaxi rides and where, and it clearly is not backing down from that June date:

In Austin, 🔜

— Tesla (@Tesla) April 18, 2025

It is getting to a point where Tesla is showing incredible confidence regarding the rollout of the Robotaxi in June. We have not seen this kind of reiteration regarding the rollout of something regarding autonomy from Tesla at any point in the past.

CEO Elon Musk has even been increasingly confident that Tesla will meet its target. Earlier this week, he said the vehicles will be able to roll off production lines and drive themselves straight to a customer’s house:

Elon Musk continues to push optimistic goal for Tesla Full Self-Driving

There could be some discussion of an acceptable grace period, as the timeline for the Robotaxi rollout could still be considered a success, even if it were a month or two late. However, if it were pushed back further into 2025 or even 2026, skepticism regarding these timelines would continue to persist.

As of right now, it seems Tesla is extremely confident it will meet its goal.