Investor's Corner
Tesla’s 3rd-largest shareholder discusses legacy auto’s ‘Kodak moment’
Amidst Tesla’s continuous rise, its disruption of the car industry is becoming more prevalent. This point was reiterated recently by a major Tesla shareholder, who noted that legacy automakers, with their decades of experience, might be facing their very own “Kodak moment.”
In a recent statement to Morningstar UK, Baillie Gifford manager Iain McCombie remarked that Tesla’s immense growth and potential remains remarkable. McCombie noted that despite short-term noise about Model 3 production, volume is beginning to come through, as evidenced by the company’s pleasantly surprising third-quarter results. The Baillie Gifford executive added that Tesla had already surpassed Daimler’s car sales in the US — a feat that seemed impossible just a few years ago.
“Now, Daimler’s been in the market for 100-plus years and here’s this upstart and they’re outselling them in the US. If you’d said that a few years ago, you’d probably have been locked up, but that’s happening,” he said.
While McCombie admitted that Baillie Gifford might be wrong about its optimistic outlook on Tesla, the finance veteran stated that at this point, it is legacy automakers that are currently feeling the pressure. With the success of Tesla and the apparent strong demand for electric vehicles, veteran carmakers are at risk of losing a core part of their business — the internal combustion engine. McCombie noted that this is reminiscent of what Kodak faced during the advent of the digital camera.
“They spent hundreds of years building up their know-how in industrial combustion engines, and they do a great job with that, but what happens if all of us are suddenly saying ‘oh, I want an electric car’? Suddenly, that know-how is useless. What happened with Kodak is they actually discovered the digital camera, but they buried it because it was too frightening for them. They thought it would kill their film business. But the fact that they didn’t innovate killed Kodak,” he said.
Faced with their very own “Kodak moment,” the Baillie Gifford manager stated that veteran carmakers, at least for now, remain centered on their legacy products. Amidst a market that is changing its preference, though, traditional auto is running the risk of being pushed out during the transition.
“Maybe they are launching electric vehicles, but the bulk of their sales are still coming from legacy products. They’ve built wonderful businesses for themselves, but what happens when the business is changing? That’s why your Tesla is exciting, because they don’t have those legacy issues,” McCombie said.
Baillie Gifford is among Tesla’s largest shareholders, third only to Elon Musk and T. Rowe Price. As of September, Baillie Gifford held a 7.8% stake at the electric car maker.
The absence of compelling electric vehicles from Tesla’s competitors was a key driver for some skeptics when they changed their stance on the company. Ahead of Tesla’s third-quarter earnings call, for one, Andrew Left of Citron Research, one of the electric car maker’s most vocal critics, turned bullish on the company, citing the dominance of the Model 3 in the US passenger car market. Left also noted that there is no “Tesla Killer” coming from rival automakers.
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- The Jaguar I-PACE.
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- The new Mercedes-Benz EQC – the first Mercedes-Benz under the product and technology brand EQ. With its seamless, clear design, the EQC is a pioneer for an avant-garde electric look with trailblazing design details and colour highlights typical of the brand both inside and out. [Credit: Mercedes-Benz]
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- The Audi e-tron. (Credit: Audi)
Brad Cornell, a hedge fund manager who believes that Tesla is overvalued, recently admitted that he had overestimated the company’s competition as well. Cornell admitted that in his past analyses and forecasts, he did not expect Tesla’s competition to roll out electric vehicles in such a slow manner. Apart from this, Cornell noted that legacy auto’s entries into the zero-emissions market have been largely uninspired. As such, vehicles like Teslas, which are green, attractive, and powerful, are becoming the EVs of choice for customers looking to buy an electric car.
“One thing I did not evaluate accurately when I began constructing valuation models for Tesla in early 2014 was how slow the competition would be to produce electric cars that people would want to drive. Tesla competitors, to the extent that any appeared, seemed to be saying that the point of an electric car was to be green and efficient, not sexy or exciting. Only Tesla had the design, the pizzazz, and the performance to make driving special and not a chore.
“My mistake in 2014 was thinking that competition for Tesla was just around the corner. Now, at the end of 2018, it is still just around the corner. Although Jaguar has been promising the I-PACE for some time, my visits to dealers have been rewarded only with promises. The same is true for the Porsche Taycan. There is not a meaningful Tesla competitor available today or in the near future,” Cornell said.
Tesla, for its part, continues to move forward. In Elon Musk’s recent interview with Kara Swisher at the Recode Decode podcast, the Tesla CEO stated that Tesla would be cash-flow positive in all quarters moving forward. Musk was also optimistic about Model 3 production, stating that Tesla is currently capable of producing 6,000-6,500 units of the electric sedan per week, though it would require employees to do a lot of overtime.
Investor's Corner
Tesla gets its best analysis from Morgan Stanley as ‘it’s all about to change’
He maintained its ‘Overweight’ rating and the $410 price target Morgan Stanley had on the stock.
Tesla has gotten perhaps its best analysis from Morgan Stanley in quite some time, as the Wall Street firm claims that “it’s all about to change.”
That phrase could be used for both the company’s status and the world in general.
Analyst Adam Jonas said in a new note on Thursday to investors that Tesla could be one of the major winners in terms of the global transition from what it is now to what it will be.
He describes the global shift that will occur over the next few years:
“Have you interacted with a robot today? Have you even seen a robot today? No? Well, take a mental picture because it’s all about to change. When we meet someone who has never been in a Waymo or a Tesla Cybercab (which is most people), we frequently see a wince and a response such as ‘I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable getting in a car without a driver.’ We imagine going back in time to 1903 and asking people if they’d feel comfortable in an airplane.’”
The same technological revolutions that have occurred over the past 150 years will continue to occur again and again. We are on the verge of another, Jonas believes, as companies like Tesla are working on artificial intelligence tech, which includes changing the way we look at things like transportation and labor.
Jonas includes an interesting tidbit in his note about how humanoid robots could change wages, and how it could work into the advantage of Tesla, especially as it is developing its own Optimus robot:
“We estimate 1 humanoid robot at $5/hour can do the work of 2 humans at $25/hour, generating an NPV of approximately $200k/humanoid. 1 robot shaped car can potentially drive down cost/mile of a ride share vehicle to <$0.20 mile (1/10th human-driven ride-share).”
Jonas sees Tesla as a key player in how AI will impact things like manufacturing and various automotive industries, and he believes there is long-term potential for AI, robomobility, and even autonomous eVTOL platforms.
Tesla stock: Morgan Stanley says eVTOL is calling Elon Musk for new chapter
He maintained its ‘Overweight’ rating and the $410 price target Morgan Stanley had on the stock.
Elon Musk
Tesla stock gets crazy prediction from CEO Elon Musk
Musk says this is what it would take to be a millionaire from a Tesla investment right now.
Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) got a crazy prediction from CEO Elon Musk recently, as the future of the company seems to be moving more toward AI, autonomy, and robotics, and away from automotive, which is what it has traditionally been recognized as.
Over the past few years, as Tesla has prioritized its Full Self-Driving suite, its rollout of a dedicated Robotaxi program, and the development of the Optimus bot, the company has gained a new reputation from analysts.
It was always looked at as a stock with tremendous potential by many Wall Street firms, some more than others.
The most bullish analysts, like Cathie Wood of ARK Invest, believe the company will eventually reach a multi-trillion-dollar valuation and a share price of over $2,000. Her $2,600 price target does not include any contributions of Optimus. Instead, it leans on Full Self-Driving and Robotaxi.
Based on where the company is now, there are a lot of potential catalysts. The Robotaxi expansion, as well as affordable vehicles, its prowess in AI and Robotics, and its powerful energy division are all arguments for investment.
One X user said that a $150,000 investment in Tesla right now would likely make you a millionaire. Musk said he thinks that sentiment is “probably correct.”
I think this is probably correct
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 5, 2025
He’s echoed this belief in recent earnings calls, including the one for Q2, which happened in July:
“I do think if Tesla continues to execute well with vehicle autonomy and humanoid robot autonomy, it will be the most valuable company in the world. A lot of execution between here and there. It doesn’t just happen. Provided we execute very well, I think Tesla has a shot at being the most valuable company in the world. Obviously, I am extremely optimistic about the future of the company.”
Tesla is trading at $316.50 at the time of writing, and has a market cap of just under $1 trillion.
Elon Musk
Tesla stock gets another analysis from Jim Cramer, and investors will like it
“Tesla is morphing right now. It’s in transition from being a car company to being a technology company.”
Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) got its latest analysis from Jim Cramer, and investors will like what he has to say.
Cramer has flip-flopped his thoughts on Tesla shares many times over the years. One time, he said CEO Elon Musk was a genius; the next, he said Ford stock was a better play. He’s always changing his tune.
However, Cramer’s most recent analysis is of a bullish tone, as he talks about the company’s evolution from an automaker to a tech powerhouse. He made the comments on CNBC’s Mad Money:
“Tesla is morphing right now. It’s in transition from being a car company to being a technology company. You wanna be in there because the tech is worth a lot more than what it’s selling for right now. Don’t care where you bought it, care where it’s going to.”
Jim Cramer last night on $TSLA: “Tesla is morphing right now. It’s in transition from being a car company to being a technology company. You wanna be in there because the tech is worth a lot more than what it’s selling for right now. Don’t care where you bought it, care where… pic.twitter.com/WzlPdQD7gq
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) August 5, 2025
Tesla has always been looked at by the mainstream media as an automaker. While that is its main business currently, Tesla has always had other divisions: Energy, Solar, Charging, AI, and Robotics. Some came after others, but the important point is that Tesla has not been an automaker exclusively for a decade.
It launched Powerwall and Powerpack in April 2015, marking the start of Tesla Energy.
But Cramer has a point here: Tesla is truly becoming much more than a car company, and it is turning into an AI and overall tech company more than ever before. Eventually, it will be recognized as such, more so than it will be as an automotive company.
Cramer’s comments also follow a recent prediction by Musk, who stated on X that he believes a $150,000 investment in Tesla shares right now would eventually turn someone into a millionaire:
I think this is probably correct
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 5, 2025
Musk has said he believes Tesla could be headed to a serious increase in valuation. Eventually, it could become the most valuable company in the world. He said this during the Q2 Earnings Call:
“I do think if Tesla continues to execute well with vehicle autonomy and humanoid robot autonomy, it will be the most valuable company in the world. A lot of execution between here and there. It doesn’t just happen. Provided we execute very well, I think Tesla has a shot at being the most valuable company in the world. Obviously, I am extremely optimistic about the future of the company.”
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Tesla gets its best analysis from Morgan Stanley as ‘it’s all about to change’
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