Investor's Corner
Tesla achieved its biggest goal for 2023, even with a lackluster quarter
Tesla achieved its biggest goal for 2023, as it confirmed yesterday it reached the 1.8 million unit goal it had for the year, even with a lackluster quarter that slowed production and deliveries.
It proves the two million unit delivery mark it had set internally was not too far-fetched. If it had not upgraded lines at its factories in Q3, it might have eclipsed that more lofty goal.
Coming into 2023, Tesla wanted 1.8 million vehicles produced and delivered to customers. It seemed to be on track after Q1 and Q2, as the first half of the year saw over 920,500 cars produced, putting the company clear of the full-year goal by roughly 40,000 units, if things remained steady.
However, Tesla had a few tricks up its sleeves. After launching the new Model 3 “Highland” in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East in October, there was an indication there could be greater sales as the year went on. The introduction of the new Model 3 helped the company get repeat sales as some drivers looked to have the updated version of the company’s all-electric sedan. Additionally, Tesla has reported growth on a quarterly basis, but that idea went to the side in Q3, at least temporarily.
Tesla explains impact of line upgrades that caused drop in production numbers
Tesla said in Q2 that it would need to update lines at several factories, including Fremont and Shanghai, which are major contributors to the company’s production volume. As the company moved forward with its production goals, it knew that a slow Q3 would make Q4 one of the most challenging yet.
Q3 saw a decrease from over 479,000 produced vehicles to just over 430,000, a sizeable decrease of just under 10 percent. It presented a major challenge for Tesla moving into Q4.
As Wedbush wrote in a note yesterday to investors, Tesla had to “come out swinging” in Q4, and in order to reach the 1.8 million mark, it would have to trigger demand through a variety of means. While Cybertruck deliveries began in late November, the impact the pickup had on delivery figures was abysmal, as volume production has yet to begin, and only a few handfuls of units made their way to customers.
Instead, Tesla incentivized vehicle purchases with a variety of tried-and-true promotions. Free Supercharging and $1,000 discounts to Cybertruck reservation holders were a few that deserve recognition. Price cuts also helped the Model S and Model X regain some of the momentum they once had, as they had the best quarterly numbers in five years.
The strategies helped Tesla gain some serious momentum in terms of sales, and it had its strongest quarter yet. Just over 5,000 units away from reaching 500,000 vehicles produced for the quarter, Tesla flexed its muscles to eclipse 1.8 million. The possibility that it could have reached two million units seems more unlikely, considering it was still over 150,000 units shy, and the difference between a normal Q3 and the Q3 that Tesla delivered this year was roughly 40,000 units.
Tesla could have been close to 1.9 million without the slow Q3, and eclipsing its yearly goal by 100,000 units would have proved to be a huge win. Moving forward, Tesla will introduce the Model 3 Highland in the United States soon, and it also will continue to ramp up production of the Cybertruck.
Moving forward, what is a number that is realistic for Tesla to make as a production goal for 2024?
I’d love to hear from you! How many cars do you expect Tesla to deliver in 2024? If you have any comments, concerns, or questions, please email me at joey@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.
Elon Musk
Tesla executes ‘a must’ with Musk as race to AI supremacy goes on: Wedbush
Dan Ives of Wedbush says Tesla made the right move getting Elon Musk his pay package.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) executed what Wedbush’s Dan Ives called “a must” this morning as it finalized a new pay package for its CEO Elon Musk.
The move helped give Musk his first meaningful compensation at Tesla since 2017, when the company offered a pay package that was based on performance and proven growth. That package was approved by shareholders on two separate occasions, but was denied to Musk both times by the Delaware Chancery Court.
On Monday, Tesla announced on X that it had created a new package that would give 96 million shares of restricted stock to Musk to compensate him for the “immense value generated for Tesla and all our shareholders.”
🚨 BREAKING: Tesla has announced that its Board has unanimously approved a recommendation from the Special Committee of the Board to grant Elon an award of restricted stock equal to approximately one-third of the compensation he earned under the 2018 CEO Performance Award.
The… https://t.co/g7RKrTymDL pic.twitter.com/dnvkILlz6H
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 4, 2025
The details of the pay package are designed to retain Musk, who has voiced some concerns about his control of Tesla, as “activist shareholders” have used lawsuits to disrupt the previously approved package.
You can read all the details of it here:
Tesla rewards CEO Elon Musk with massive, restricted stock package
Ives says Musk’s retention is ‘a must’
Ives said in a note to investors on Monday that with the raging AI talent war that Tesla made a smart move by doing what it could to retain Musk.
He wrote:
“With the AI talent war now fully underway across Big Tech, we believe this was a strategic move to keep TSLA’s top asset, Musk, would stay focused at the company with his priority being to bolster the company’s growth strategy over the coming years. With this interim award increasing Musk’s voting rights upon this grant, which Musk honed in on and mentioned was increasingly important to incentivize him to stay focused on the matters at hand, this was a strategic move by the Board to solidify Musk as CEO of Tesla over the coming years with this framework for Musk’s pay package and greater voting control removing a major overhang on the story.”
He went on to say:
“While the groundwork is now in place for the next few years, it will be critical for the Tesla Board of Directors to get this long-term compensation strategy in place prior to the company’s November 6th shareholder meeting which would address the elephant in the room and remove a significant overhang on the stock.”
Wedbush maintained its Outperform rating and its $500 price target on the stock.
Elon Musk
Tesla rewards CEO Elon Musk with massive, restricted stock package
Tesla announced a new pay package for Elon Musk that is restricted and will award him nearly $30 billion for contributions to the company.
Tesla has rewarded CEO Elon Musk with a massive, restricted stock package that equates to about $29 billion in shares in an effort to retain him as the head of the company.
It is also a package that aims to reward Musk for leading numerous Tesla projects that have brought billions in value for shareholders over the past seven years. After his 2018 pay package was rejected by a Delaware Chancery Court, Musk started to question his future at the company.
This move, performed by a Special Committee of the Tesla Board, should retain him for several years.
🚨 BREAKING: Tesla has announced that its Board has unanimously approved a recommendation from the Special Committee of the Board to grant Elon an award of restricted stock equal to approximately one-third of the compensation he earned under the 2018 CEO Performance Award.
The… https://t.co/g7RKrTymDL pic.twitter.com/dnvkILlz6H
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) August 4, 2025
On Monday morning, Tesla shared on X that it had approved a recommendation from a Special Committee comprised of Board Chair Robyn Denholm and fellow board member Kathleen Wilson-Thompson. It aimed to compensate Musk for his “extraordinary work” and reward him after not receiving “meaningful compensation” for the last eight years.
The post stated that “Tesla is committed to honoring its promises in the 2018 CEO Performance Award and intends to compensate its CEO for his future services commensurate with his contributions to our company and shareholders, we have recommended this award as a first step, ‘good faith’ payment to Elon.”
The award includes the following:
- 96 million restricted shares of stock, subject to Elon paying a purchase price upon meeting a two-year vesting term, to be delivered after receipt of antitrust regulatory approval
- The purchase price will be equal to the split-adjusted exercise price of the stock options awarded to Elon under the 2018 CEO Performance Award ($23.34 per share)
- A requirement that Elon serve continuously in a senior leadership role at Tesla during the two-year vesting term
- A pledging allowance to cover tax payments or the purchase price
- A mandatory holding period of five years from the grant date, except to cover tax payments or the purchase price (with any sales for such purposes to be conducted through an orderly disposition in coordination with Tesla); and
- If the Delaware courts fully reinstate the 2018 CEO Performance Award, this interim award will be forfeited or returned or a portion of the 2018 CEO Performance Award will be forfeited. To put it simply, there cannot be any “double dip.” Elon will not be able to keep this new award in addition to the options he will be awarded under the 2018 CEO Performance Award, should the courts rule in our favor
The board added:
“The Special Committee believes now is the right time to take decisive action to recognize the extraordinary value that Elon created for Tesla shareholders. As such, the Board (with Elon and Kimbal Musk recusing themselves) has unanimously approved a recommendation from the Special Committee of the Board to grant Elon an award of restricted stock equal to approximately one-third of the compensation he earned under the 2018 CEO Performance Award.”
Musk and his brother, Kimbal, are both members of the Tesla board. However, both Musk brothers recused themselves from any voting on this pay package.
The move comes as Musk has hinted on several occasions that he is concerned about his control of the company. His current stake in Tesla stands at about 12.8 percent. He has said a few times he would be more comfortable with a 25 percent stake to protect himself against “activist shareholders.”
He commented on it during the Q2 Earnings Call in late July:
“That is a major concern for me, as I’ve mentioned in the past. I hope that is addressed at the upcoming shareholders’ meeting. But, yeah, it is a big deal. I want to find that I’ve got so little control that I can easily be ousted by activist shareholders after having built this army of humanoid robots. I think my control over Tesla, Inc. should be enough to ensure that it goes in a good direction, but not so much control that I can’t be thrown out if I go crazy.”
The pay package should alleviate any concerns that Tesla would lose Musk as its CEO. Retaining him is perhaps the biggest step in ensuring consistent progress is made on several fronts, including AI and Robotics.
Investor's Corner
Tesla tailwinds could drive momentum-filled finish to 2025: analyst
Tesla is heading toward some momentum to finish out the year, one Wall Street firm believes.
Tesla has some tailwinds that could drive it toward a momentum-filled finish to the year, one Wall Street analyst is predicting.
The tailwinds are joined by some minor risks that have impacted the broader electric vehicle market, but overall, this firm believes Tesla has many catalysts moving forward.
Emmanuel Rosner of Wolfe Research believes that Tesla has plenty of things that could drive the stock upward as we approach the end of the year. With Q3 well underway, Tesla has about five months of catalysts to rely on to erase the roughly 18 percent drop in stock price it has so far this year.
At first glance, it is easy to see the things that would have investors bullish on Tesla for the rest of 2025 and even beyond. Initially, the Robotaxi launch and expansion, which spread to Northern California last night, provide potentially huge tailwinds for the company moving forward.
Along with that, and slightly related, are the advancements in Full Self-Driving that the company has made over the past few months.
This includes the potential launch of the FSD suite in regions like Europe and Australia, where the company believes it will make some progress on regulatory approval in the coming months.
Finally, Wolfe says the company’s Optimus project, which is expected to enter scale production sometime next year, is the third catalyst for Tesla moving forward.
With these three projects in motion, Tesla truly can begin to work on rebounding from a rough 2025 on the market.
Rosner writes:
“This name trades more around the narrative than the numbers. And net-net, we tactically see an improving narrative from here. Tesla has several catalysts coming up w/r/t FSD and Robotaxi, including an expansion of their AV service into several new U.S. markets (San Francisco, Nevada, Arizona, Florida, etc.). The company plans to unlock hands-free/eyes-off autonomy for FSD owners in select U.S. locations by YE25. Supervised FSD in China and Europe is expected to launch over the next ~12 months. And, Optimus is expected to enter scale production in 2026.”
Tesla is currently trading around $310 at around 3:20 p.m. on the East Coast.
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