

Investor's Corner
Tesla stock proves volatile amid TSLA bull’s cautious stance, longtime critic’s optimistic outlook
Tesla stock (NASDAQ:TSLA) is showing its trademark volatility today, amidst a longtime bull’s more cautious stance and a surprisingly optimistic outlook from a longtime critic. Tesla shares opened at $279.68 on Tuesday’s trading, down 2.04% from Monday’s $285.50 close.
In a recent note on Tuesday, Nomura Instinet analyst Romit Shah downgraded Tesla from “Buy” to “Neutral” in a note to clients titled No Longer Investable. Shah stated in his note that he had been one of Tesla’s biggest bulls since starting his coverage of the company last October, but recent developments concerning Elon Musk have been less than encouraging, particularly regarding the CEO’s Twitter behavior.
“The issue though is the erratic behavior of CEO Elon Musk. During the second quarter, the switch seemingly flipped. This is best expressed in the number of tweets per day, which increased to 15 per day since May from four per day during the prior 18 months,” Shah wrote.
That being said, the Nomura Instinet analyst remains optimistic about the progress that Tesla as a company has accomplished with the Model 3 production ramp. Shah noted that Tesla could very well out-innovate the competition, and the company may eventually become much bigger than it is today, but it would be wise to remain on the sidelines until the electric car maker has better leadership.
“With the launch of the Model 3, we saw that consumers were willing to forego compelling alternatives despite extended wait times and a premium price point. Notwithstanding improving fundamentals, we believe that Tesla is in need of better leadership (an about-face) and are moving to the sidelines until we see what happens with management,” Shah wrote.
With his recent note, the Nomura Instinet analyst opted to cut Tesla’s price target from $400 to $300.
In what could only be described as a dash of irony, Tesla recently received an optimistic outlook from a longtime critic as well. In a note published on Monday, Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi stated that TSLA shares would likely bounce back up after the company’s recent drops. Sacconaghi, who has been a vocal critic of Tesla in the past (he is also one of the two analysts that caught Elon Musk’s ire during the now-infamous Q1 2018 earnings call), stated that whenever the company’s shares dipped below $300, it became an “attractive” entry point for investors.
“We see the current dip in Tesla’s stock as analogous to prior trading opportunities, which have tended to arise when the stock falls below ~$300 per share. We think the setup in sentiment looks relatively favorable for the next few weeks. We now see the near-term risk-reward for Tesla as relatively skewed to the upside, given the potential for the stock to revert towards the middle of its $270 to $370 range,” the analyst wrote.
Sacconaghi also noted that behind the noise from the controversies surrounding Elon Musk, Tesla itself appears to be on track for its Model 3 goals this quarter.
“However, it is unclear to us that any of these are deal breakers for the stock. There has been little incremental news about Tesla’s fundamentals. The company appears to remain on track to meet its Model 3 production guidance,” Sacconaghi wrote.
With less than three weeks before the end of September, Tesla is now in full throttle as it attempts to reach its target of producing a total of 50,000-55,000 Model 3 this quarter. Elon Musk appears to be confident of the company’s chances this Q3, as revealed in a letter to employees shared in Tesla’s official blog last Friday. In the letter, Musk noted that Tesla is poised to have the “most amazing quarter” in its history, and it is about to build and deliver “more than twice as many cars” as it did in Q2 2018.
As of writing, Tesla shares are trading down 2.74% at $277.69 per share.
Disclosure: I have no ownership in shares of TSLA and have no plans to initiate any positions within 72 hours.
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.
Investor's Corner
Tesla just got a weird price target boost from a notable bear

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) just got a weird price target boost from a notable bear just a day after it announced its strongest quarter in terms of vehicle deliveries and energy deployments.
JPMorgan raised its price target on Tesla shares from $115 to $150. It maintained its ‘Underweight’ rating on the stock.
Despite Tesla reporting 497,099 deliveries, about 12 percent above the 443,000 anticipated from the consensus, JPMorgan is still skeptical that the company can keep up its momentum, stating most of its Q3 strength came from leaning on the removal of the $7,500 EV tax credit, which expired on September 30.
Tesla hits record vehicle deliveries and energy deployments in Q3 2025
The firm said Tesla benefited from a “temporary stronger-than-expected industry-wide pull-forward” as the tax credit expired. It is no secret that consumers flocked to the company this past quarter to take advantage of the credit.
The bump will need to be solidified as the start of a continuing trend of strong vehicle deliveries, the firm said in a note to investors. Analysts said that one quarter of strength was “too soon to declare Tesla as having sustainably returned to growth in its core business.”
JPMorgan does not anticipate Tesla having strong showings with vehicle deliveries after Q4.
There are two distinct things that stick out with this note: the first is the lack of recognition of other parts of Tesla’s business, and the confusion that surrounds future quarters.
JPMorgan did not identify Tesla’s strength in autonomy, energy storage, or robotics, with autonomy and robotics being the main focuses of the company’s future. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving and Robotaxi efforts are incredibly relevant and drive more impact moving forward than vehicle deliveries.
Additionally, the confusion surrounding future delivery numbers in quarters past Q3 is evident.
Will Tesla thrive without the EV tax credit? Five reasons why they might
Tesla will receive some assistance from deliveries of vehicles that will reach customers in Q4, but will still qualify for the credit under the IRS’s revised rules. It will also likely introduce an affordable model this quarter, which should have a drastic impact on deliveries depending on pricing.
Tesla shares are trading at $422.40 at 2:35 p.m. on the East Coast.
-
Elon Musk2 weeks ago
Tesla FSD V14 set for early wide release next week: Elon Musk
-
News2 weeks ago
Elon Musk gives update on Tesla Optimus progress
-
News2 weeks ago
Tesla has a new first with its Supercharger network
-
News2 weeks ago
Tesla job postings seem to show next surprise market entry
-
Investor's Corner2 weeks ago
Tesla gets new Street-high price target with high hopes for autonomy domination
-
Lifestyle2 weeks ago
500-mile test proves why Tesla Model Y still humiliates rivals in Europe
-
News1 week ago
Tesla Giga Berlin’s water consumption has achieved the unthinkable
-
Lifestyle2 weeks ago
Tesla Model S Plaid battles China’s 1500 hp monster Nurburgring monster, with surprising results