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Tesla (TSLA) shows volatility after Elon Musk hints at record Q2, strong Model 3 demand

(Credit: Harbles/Twitter)

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Tesla shares (NASDAQ:TSLA) proved volatile after the opening bell on Wednesday, as both bullish and bearish analysts took their stance following the electric car maker’s annual shareholder meeting. During the investor event, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, CTO JB Straubel, and VP for Tech Drew Baglino discussed the company’s expansion, its product lineup, and the company’s projects for the coming years.

Musk directly addressed concerns about the Model 3’s alleged weakening demand, a bearish thesis that has gained ground since the company reported its lower-than-expected Q1 2019 figures. During the shareholder meeting, the CEO noted that sales are still exceeding Tesla’s production capabilities, and the company has a pretty fair chance at setting new records this second quarter. “I want to be clear that there is not a demand problem… absolutely not. Sales have far exceeded production, and production has been pretty good. We have a decent shot at a record quarter,” Musk said.

Apart from highlighting the strong demand for the company’s vehicles, Musk also covered Tesla’s lead in electric car technology over more experienced rivals. Showing a slide that compared the efficiency of Tesla’s vehicles compared to the competition such as the Audi e-tron, Musk joked that while he does not want to poke fun at rivals, “there’s room for improvement.” Other projects, such as the Solar Roof, Gigafactory Europe, the Tesla Truck, and Full Self-Driving (among many) were also discussed.

Tesla’s annual shareholder meeting was received positively by the company’s supporters on Wall Street. Baird analyst Ben Kallo, for one, maintained his $340 price target while reiterating his “Outperform” rating on Tesla. “Management indicated demand is not a concern; we believe the narrative is overly negative and think Bear arguments will be disproven in the coming weeks and months,” the firm noted.

True to form, Tesla bears interpreted the recent shareholder meeting in a negative light. Gabe Hoffman of Accipiter Capital, a longtime TSLA bear, claimed that the event saw Elon Musk dialing down on the company’s plans for a network of full self-driving robotaxis. “Elon already started backtracking on the whole 2020 robotaxi thing,” Hoffman noted, claiming that Musk’s statements were indicative of shifting narratives that the CEO employs to distract investors from the company’s deeper problems.

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Hoffman’s comments about the annual shareholder meeting appear to be misplaced, as Musk only reiterated Tesla’s plans to have a fleet of around 1 million robotaxi-capable vehicles by next year during the shareholder meeting. Considering that Tesla equips all its new cars with its custom FSD computer, this goal is more than feasible. This point appears to have been misinterpreted by Hoffman, who seems to have taken Musk’s statements during the previous Autonomy Day to mean that Tesla will have a fleet of Robotaxis by 2020.

The annual shareholder meeting was, in many ways, a show of strength from the electric car maker. Musk, together with the CTO and VP for Tech, exuded confidence in the company’s current and future plans. Straubel, in particular, was very involved, seemingly debunking the speculations that he is starting to distance himself from Tesla. With Musk assuring investors that demand is strong and Q2 could be poised to pleasantly surprise, TSLA stock could very well see more green days before the end of the quarter.

As of writing, TSLA stock is trading -1.57% at $213.70 per share.

Disclosure: I have no ownership in shares of TSLA and have no plans to initiate any positions within 72 hours.

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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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Elon Musk

Elon Musk affirms Tesla commitment and grueling work schedule: “Daddy is very much home”

The remarks came as Tesla shares crossed the $400 mark on the stock market.

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk reiterated his commitment to the electric vehicle maker and its future projects this week, responding to speculation following his $1 billion purchase of TSLA stock. 

The remarks came as Tesla shares crossed the $400 mark on the stock market, extending a rally fueled in part by Musk’s TSLA purchase.

Elon Musk’s nonstop work schedule

Amidst the reaction of TSLA stock to Musk’s $1 billion investment, Tesla owners such as @greggertruck noted that “Daddy’s home.” Musk replied, stating that “Daddy is very much home.” He then shared details of a packed weekend of work, which was definitely grueling but completely within character for a “wartime CEO.”

Musk did note, however, that he had lunch with his kids during the weekend despite his extremely busy schedule.

“Daddy is very much home. Am burning the midnight oil with Optimus engineering on Friday night, then redeye overnight to Austin arriving 5am, wake up to have lunch with my kids and then spend all Saturday afternoon in deep technical reviews for the Tesla AI5 chip design. 

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“Fly to Colossus II on Monday to walk the whole datacenter floor, review transformers and power production (excellent progress), depart midnight. Then up to 12 hours of back-to-back meetings across all Tesla departments, but with a particular focus on AI/Autopilot, Optimus production plans, and vehicle production/delivery,” Musk wrote in his post

Wartime CEO

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives described Musk as operating in “wartime CEO mode,” highlighting autonomous driving and AI as a trillion-dollar market opportunity for Tesla. Musk reiterated this point late last month as well, when he outlined the several projects he is juggling among his numerous companies. At the time, Musk stated that he was busy with Starship 10, Grok 5, and Tesla V14. This was despite his notable presence on X. 

With Tesla Master Plan Part IV being partly released, the company is entering what could very well be its most ambitious stage to date. To usher in an era of sustainable abundance, Tesla would definitely require a “wartime CEO,” someone who could remain locked in and determined to push through any obstacles to ensure that the company achieves its goals.

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Elon Musk

Tesla analyst says Musk stock buy should send this signal to investors

“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish.”

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(Credit: Tesla)

Tesla CEO Elon Musk purchased roughly $1 billion in Tesla shares on Friday, and analysts are now breaking down the move as the stock is headed upward.

One of them is William Blair analyst Jed Dorsheimer, who said in a new note to investors on Monday that Musk’s move should send a signal of confidence to stock buyers, especially considering the company’s numerous catalysts that currently exist.

Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever

Dorsheimer said in the note:

“With Musk’s (Tesla stock) purchase, combined with the upward momentum for delivery expectations and robotaxi rollout, we are becoming more bullish. This purchase is Musk’s first buy since 2020. To us, this sends a strong signal of confidence in the most important part of Tesla’s future business, robotaxi.”

Musk putting an additional $1 billion back into the company in the form of more stock ownership is obviously a huge vote of confidence.

He knows more than anyone about the progress Tesla has made and is making on the Robotaxi platform, as well as the company’s ongoing efforts to solve vehicle autonomy. If he’s buying stock, it is more than likely a good sign.

Tesla has continued to expand its Robotaxi platform in a number of ways. The project has gotten bigger in terms of service area, vehicle fleet, and testing population. Tesla has also recently received a permit to test in Nevada, unlocking the potential to expand into a brand-new state for the company.

In the note, Dorsheimer also touched on Musk’s recent pay package, revealing that William Blair recently met with Tesla’s Board of Directors, who gave the firm some more color on the situation:

“We recently participated in a meeting with Tesla’s board of directors to discuss the details of Musk’s performance package. The board is confident of its position in the Delaware case and anticipates a verdict by end of year. It does not expect a similar situation to occur under new Texas jurisdiction. Musk has the board’s full support, and we expect he’ll get more than enough shareholder support for this to pass with flying colors.”

Tesla stock is up over 6 percent so far today, trading at $421.50 at the time of publication.

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Elon Musk

Elon Musk just bought $1 billion in Tesla stock, his biggest purchase ever

Prior to this latest move, Musk’s most recent purchase was for about 200,000 shares worth $10 million in 2020.

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Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons


Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares rose on Monday after CEO Elon Musk disclosed a rare insider purchase of company stock worth about $1 billion. 

A filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed that Musk acquired 2.57 million shares last Friday at various prices. The move represents Musk’s largest TSLA purchase ever by value, as per Verity data.

Elon Musk’s TSLA purchase

The disclosure sent Tesla shares up more than 8% in premarket trading Monday, as investors read the purchase as a notable vote of confidence, as stated in a CNBC report. Tesla stock had closed slightly lower Friday but remains more than 25% higher over the past three months. It should be noted that prior to this latest move, Musk’s most recent purchase was for about 200,000 shares worth $10 million in 2020.

Market watchers say the purchase could help shore up investor sentiment amid a volatile year for TSLA stock. Shares have faced pressure from a variety of factors, from year-over-year sales challenges due to the new Model Y changeover, political controversies tied to Musk, and reduced U.S. incentives for EVs under the Trump administration. Nevertheless, analysts such as Wedbush’s Dan Ives stated that Musk’s purchase was a “huge sign of confidence for Tesla bulls and shows Musk is doubling down on his Tesla A.I. bet.”

Tesla and Elon Musk

Musk already owns about 13% of Tesla, and his latest purchase comes as the company prepares for a key shareholder vote in November. Investors will decide whether to approve a compensation package for Musk that could ultimately be worth as much as $975 billion if ambitious market value milestones are achieved. The package has a long-term target of pushing Tesla’s market capitalization to $8.5 trillion, compared with about $1.3 trillion at Friday’s close.

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Wall Street’s current consensus price target still implies a roughly 20% decline from current levels, though some Tesla bulls remain optimistic that the company could shift its focus toward autonomy, AI, and robotics. Musk has also asked shareholders to approve an investment into his latest venture, xAI.

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