Investor's Corner

Tesla and the rise of the Model 3 get acknowledged by US auto dealership exec

(Credit: Harbles/Twitter)

Published

7 years ago

February 21, 2019

Simon Alvarez

The president of Sonic Automotive Inc., a prominent auto dealership in the United States, recently acknowledged Tesla’s disruption of the country’s car industry as a reason behind headwinds faced by the network in the past quarter. While answering inquiries during Sonic’s Q4 2018 earnings call, Jeff Dyke, the company’s president, noted that Tesla and the rise of the Model 3 played a role in the weakening sales of brands such as BMW, especially in areas such as California.

Sonic Automotive Inc. is the fifth-largest auto dealership in the United States, with other 100 locations representing 24 brands across the country. Despite its wide reach, Sonic’s fourth-quarter results missed analysts’ estimates. Addressing its Q4 miss, Dyke noted that the past quarter has been rough on brands such as BMW, which has a number of dealerships in California — a region that houses Tesla’s headquarters and arguably the largest market for the Model 3 in America.

Responding to an inquiry from Morningstar analyst David Whiston, who asked if the rise of the Model 3 was a factor in the headwinds faced by BMW last quarter, Dyke candidly admitted that “there’s no question” the electric sedan played a major role in the challenges faced by the German carmaker. The Sonic Automotive president also noted that despite Tesla’s shortcomings, the company just keeps selling cars.

“There’s no question. I mean — they’re calling out to sell well over 300,000 cars this year; they sold a lot of cars last year. I can tell you that I’ve spent a lot of time in manufacturer meetings, and five years ago, Tesla was just not even a real big topic. And today, it’s the top of everybody’s board, and it needs to be. They’re selling a lot of cars.

“And until BMW — I think Audi is really doing a good job coming out with products — but until the manufacturers come with the line-up to deal with them, you can say all you want about their service problems and all of this; they’ll just keep selling more cars. My hat’s off to them — they’re selling a lot of cars, and there is no question in California that it’s getting in our shorts.”

Credit must be due to the Sonic Automotive Inc. president for recognizing the inconvenient truth that is Tesla and the disruption being brought about by the rise of the Model 3. Over the past year, Tesla transitioned from a company that could barely produce 2,000 Model 3 a week to a carmaker that delivered more than 140,000 units of the electric sedan by the end of 2018. Also notable is that the Model 3 made such an impact in the United States despite the country usually preferring larger vehicles like pickups and SUVs over passenger cars.

With even more affordable Model 3 variants in the horizon, such the still-elusive $35,000 base variant, established dealers such as Sonic Automotive and brands such as BMW might see even more challenging times ahead.

Simon Alvarez

Simon is an experienced automotive reporter with a passion for electric cars and clean energy. Fascinated by the world envisioned by Elon Musk, he hopes to make it to Mars (at least as a tourist) someday. For stories or tips--or even to just say a simple hello--send a message to his email, simon@teslarati.com or his handle on X, @ResidentSponge.

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Investor's Corner

Tesla wins $508 price target from Stifel as Robotaxi rollout gains speed

The firm cited meaningful progress in Tesla’s robotaxi roadmap, ongoing Full Self-Driving enhancements, and the company’s long-term growth initiatives.

Published

13 hours ago

November 17, 2025

Simon Alvarez

Credit: Joe Tegtmeyer/X

Tesla received another round of bullish analyst updates this week, led by Stifel, raising its price target to $508 from $483 while reaffirming a “Buy” rating. The firm cited meaningful progress in Tesla’s robotaxi roadmap, ongoing Full Self-Driving enhancements, and the company’s long-term growth initiatives.

Robotaxi rollout, FSD updates, and new affordable cars

Stifel expects Tesla’s robotaxi fleet to expand into 8–10 major metropolitan areas by the end of 2025, including Austin, where early deployments without safety drivers are targeted before year-end. Additional markets under evaluation include Nevada, Florida, and Arizona, as noted in an Investing.com report. The firm also highlighted strong early performance for FSD Version 14, with upcoming releases adding new “reasoning capabilities” designed to improve complex decision-making using full 360-degree vision.

Tesla has also taken steps to offset the loss of U.S. EV tax credits by launching the Model Y Standard and Model 3 Standard at $39,990 and $36,990, Stifel noted. Both vehicles deliver more than 300 miles of range and are positioned to sustain demand despite shifting incentives. Stifel raised its EBITDA forecasts to $14.9 billion for 2025 and $19.5 billion for 2026, assigning partial valuation weightings to Tesla’s FSD, robotaxi, and Optimus initiatives.

TD Cowen also places an optimistic price target

TD Cowen reiterated its Buy rating with a $509 price target after a research tour of Giga Texas, citing production scale and operational execution as key strengths. The firm posted its optimistic price target following a recent Mobility Bus tour in Austin. The tour included a visit to Giga Texas, which offered fresh insights into the company’s operations and prospects.

Additional analyst movements include Truist Securities maintaining its Hold rating following shareholder approval of Elon Musk’s compensation plan, viewing the vote as reducing leadership uncertainty.

@teslarati Tesla Full Self-Driving yields for pedestrians while human drivers do not…the future is here! #tesla #teslafsd #fullselfdriving ♬ 2 Little 2 Late – Levi & Mario

Investor's Corner

Tesla receives major institutional boost with Nomura’s rising stake

The move makes Tesla Nomura’s 10th-largest holding at about 1% of its entire portfolio.

Published

16 hours ago

November 17, 2025

Simon Alvarez

Credit: Tesla China

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has gained fresh institutional support, with Nomura Asset Management expanding its position in the automaker.

Nomura boosted its Tesla holdings by 4.2%, adding 47,674 shares and bringing its total position to more than 1.17 million shares valued at roughly $373.6 million. The move makes Tesla Nomura’s 10th-largest holding at about 1% of its entire portfolio.

Institutional investors and TSLA

Nomura’s filing was released alongside several other fund updates. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings by 11.8%, as noted in a MarketBeat report, and Revolve Wealth Partners lifted its TSLA position by 21.2%. Bison Wealth increased its Tesla stake by 52.2%, AMG National Trust Bank increased its position in shares of Tesla by 11.8%, and FAS Wealth Partners increased its TSLA holdings by 22.1%. About 66% of all outstanding Tesla shares are now owned by institutional investors.

The buying comes shortly after Tesla reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting $0.50 per share compared with the $0.48 consensus. Revenue reached $28.10 billion, topping Wall Street’s $24.98 billion estimate. Despite the earnings beat, Tesla continues to trade at a steep premium relative to peers, with a market cap hovering around $1.34 trillion and a price-to-earnings ratio near 270.

Recent insider sales

Some Tesla insiders have sold stock as of late. CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,606 shares in early September for just over $918,000, reducing his personal stake by about 21%. Director James R. Murdoch executed a far larger sale, offloading 120,000 shares for roughly $42 million and trimming his holdings by nearly 15%. Over the past three months, Tesla insiders have collectively sold 202,606 shares valued at approximately $75.6 million, as per SEC disclosures.

Tesla is currently entering its next phase of growth, and if it is successful, it could very well become the world’s most valuable company as a result. The company has several high-profile projects expected to be rolled out in the coming years, including Optimus, the humanoid robot, and the Cybercab, an autonomous two-seater with the potential to change the face of roads across the globe.

@teslarati Tesla Full Self-Driving yields for pedestrians while human drivers do not…the future is here! #tesla #teslafsd #fullselfdriving ♬ 2 Little 2 Late – Levi & Mario

Investor's Corner

Ron Baron states Tesla and SpaceX are lifetime investments

Baron, one of Tesla’s longest-standing bulls, reiterated that his personal stake in the company remains fully intact even as volatility pressures the broader market.

Published

4 days ago

November 14, 2025

Simon Alvarez

Credit: @TeslaLarry/X

Billionaire investor Ron Baron says he isn’t touching a single share of his personal Tesla holdings despite the recent selloff in the tech sector. Baron, one of Tesla’s longest-standing bulls, reiterated that his personal stake in the company remains fully intact even as volatility pressures the broader market.

Baron doubles down on Tesla

Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Baron stated that he is largely unfazed by the market downturn, describing his approach during the selloff as simply “looking” for opportunities. He emphasized that Tesla remains the centerpiece of his long-term strategy, recalling that although Baron Funds once sold 30% of its Tesla position due to client pressure, he personally refused to trim any of his personal holdings.

“We sold 30% for clients. I did not sell personally a single share,” he said. Baron’s exposure highlighted this stance, stating that roughly 40% of his personal net worth is invested in Tesla alone. The legendary investor stated that he has already made about $8 billion from Tesla from an investment of $400 million when he started, and believes that figure could rise fivefold over the next decade as the company scales its technology, manufacturing, and autonomy roadmap.

The 32nd Annual Baron Investment Conference is in full swing at @LincolnCenter!

From the vibrant energy on the plaza to the excitement filling the auditorium, today reflects the shared enthusiasm that brings our investors together year after year.#BaronConference25 pic.twitter.com/MX4zvFIwha— Baron Capital (@BaronCapital) November 14, 2025

A lifelong investment

Baron’s commitment extends beyond Tesla. He stated that he also holds about 25% of his personal wealth in SpaceX and another 35% in Baron mutual funds, creating a highly concentrated portfolio built around Elon Musk–led companies. During the interview, Baron revisited a decades-old promise he made to his fund’s board when he sought approval to invest in publicly traded companies.

“I told the board, ‘If you let me invest a certain amount of money, then I will promise that I won’t sell any of my stock. I will be the last person out of the stock,’” he said. “I will not sell a single share of my shares until my clients sold 100% of their shares. … And I don’t expect to sell in my lifetime Tesla or SpaceX.”

Watch Ron Baron’s CNBC interview below.