Investor's Corner
Tesla completes Maxwell acquisition, ushers another era of battery breakthroughs
Tesla recently confirmed that it had completed the acquisition of Maxwell Technologies Inc., a California-based company that specializes in ultracapacitors and batteries. In a press release on Thursday, the electric car maker noted that it is transferring stocks worth over $235 million to take over Maxwell.
The acquisition of Maxwell Technologies could usher in new improvements in Tesla’s battery technology, which is already among the best in the electric vehicle market today. Before its acquisition by Tesla, Maxwell had been developing dry electrode technologies that could be utilized to create ultracapacitors, which can store large amounts of electrical charge without losing energy. Industry watchers have noted that ultracapacitors could eventually be an alternative to today’s batteries, particularly as they have the potential to be safer and more reliable.
Tesla is in a constant process of improving its vehicles technologies, with President of Automotive Jerome Guillen noting in a previous interview that the batteries of the company are always in a process of improvement. With Maxwell’s technology in its repertoire, Tesla could potentially improve its batteries, widening the gap between itself and its competitors in the electric car market further.
Maxwell has previously stated that its dry electrode technology has demonstrated an energy density of 300 Wh/kg, and that it had “identified” a path to path to 500 Wh/kg. A Tesla Model 3 battery pack, on the other hand, has an energy density of 272 Wh/liter, with the 2170 cells producing 207 Wh/kg, according to Extreme Tech.
Maxwell Technologies is the fifth company that has been acquired by the electric car maker. Before Maxwell, Tesla had acquired Riviera Tool LLC, a company that specializes in stamping die systems; SolarCity, a provider of solar energy services; Grohmann Engineering, a company that produces Tesla’s robots for production; and Perbix, a company that creates highly automated production equipment.
Following is Tesla’s press release on Maxwell’s acquisition.
PALO ALTO, Calif., May 16, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) today announced the successful completion of its previously announced offer to exchange all outstanding shares of common stock of Maxwell Technologies, Inc. (“Maxwell”) for 0.0193 of a share of Tesla common stock, together with cash in lieu of any fractional shares of Tesla common stock, without interest and less any applicable withholding taxes.
The exchange offer expired at 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on Wednesday, May 15, 2019. As of the expiration of the exchange offer, a total of approximately 36,764,342 shares of common stock of Maxwell were validly tendered in the exchange offer and not validly withdrawn, representing approximately 79% of the aggregate voting power of the shares of Maxwell common stock outstanding immediately after the consummation of the exchange offer. All shares of Maxwell common stock that were validly tendered and not validly withdrawn prior to the expiration of the offer have been accepted by Tesla for payment in accordance with the terms of the exchange offer.
Following to the completion of the exchange offer, Tesla completed the acquisition of Maxwell by consummating the second step merger contemplated by the previously announced merger agreement between Tesla and Maxwell. As a result of this merger, all shares of Maxwell stock that were not tendered in Tesla’s exchange offer were cancelled in exchange for the right to receive the same consideration paid for Maxwell stock in the exchange offer.
Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) has landed an elusive “must own” status from Wall Street firm Melius, according to a new note released early this week.
Analyst Rob Wertheimer said Tesla will lead the charge in world-changing tech, given the company’s focus on self-driving, autonomy, and Robotaxi. In a note to investors, Wertheimer said “the world is about to change, dramatically,” because of the advent of self-driving cars.
He looks at the industry and sees many potential players, but the firm says there will only be one true winner:
“Our point is not that Tesla is at risk, it’s that everybody else is.”
The major argument is that autonomy is nearing a tipping point where years of chipping away at the software and data needed to develop a sound, safe, and effective form of autonomous driving technology turn into an avalanche of progress.
Wertheimer believes autonomy is a $7 trillion sector,” and in the coming years, investors will see “hundreds of billions in value shift to Tesla.”
A lot of the major growth has to do with the all-too-common “butts in seats” strategy, as Wertheimer believes that only a fraction of people in the United States have ridden in a self-driving car. In Tesla’s regard, only “tens of thousands” have tried Tesla’s latest Full Self-Driving (Supervised) version, which is v14.
Tesla Full Self-Driving v14.2 – Full Review, the Good and the Bad
When it reaches a widespread rollout and more people are able to experience Tesla Full Self-Driving v14, he believes “it will shock most people.”
Citing things like Tesla’s massive data pool from its vehicles, as well as its shift to end-to-end neural nets in 2021 and 2022, as well as the upcoming AI5 chip, which will be put into a handful of vehicles next year, but will reach a wider rollout in 2027, Melius believes many investors are not aware of the pace of advancement in self-driving.
Tesla’s lead in its self-driving efforts is expanding, Wertheimer says. The company is making strategic choices on everything from hardware to software, manufacturing, and overall vehicle design. He says Tesla has left legacy automakers struggling to keep pace as they still rely on outdated architectures and fragmented supplier systems.
Tesla shares are up over 6 percent at 10:40 a.m. on the East Coast, trading at around $416.
Investor's Corner
Tesla analyst maintains $500 PT, says FSD drives better than humans now
The team also met with Tesla leaders for more than an hour to discuss autonomy, chip development, and upcoming deployment plans.
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) received fresh support from Piper Sandler this week after analysts toured the Fremont Factory and tested the company’s latest Full Self-Driving software. The firm reaffirmed its $500 price target, stating that FSD V14 delivered a notably smooth robotaxi demonstration and may already perform at levels comparable to, if not better than, average human drivers.
The team also met with Tesla leaders for more than an hour to discuss autonomy, chip development, and upcoming deployment plans.
Analysts highlight autonomy progress
During more than 75 minutes of focused discussions, analysts reportedly focused on FSD v14’s updates. Piper Sandler’s team pointed to meaningful strides in perception, object handling, and overall ride smoothness during the robotaxi demo.
The visit also included discussions on updates to Tesla’s in-house chip initiatives, its Optimus program, and the growth of the company’s battery storage business. Analysts noted that Tesla continues refining cost structures and capital expenditure expectations, which are key elements in future margin recovery, as noted in a Yahoo Finance report.
Analyst Alexander Potter noted that “we think FSD is a truly impressive product that is (probably) already better at driving than the average American.” This conclusion was strengthened by what he described as a “flawless robotaxi ride to the hotel.”
Street targets diverge on TSLA
While Piper Sandler stands by its $500 target, it is not the highest estimate on the Street. Wedbush, for one, has a $600 per share price target for TSLA stock.
Other institutions have also weighed in on TSLA stock as of late. HSBC reiterated a Reduce rating with a $131 target, citing a gap between earnings fundamentals and the company’s market value. By contrast, TD Cowen maintained a Buy rating and a $509 target, pointing to strong autonomous driving demonstrations in Austin and the pace of software-driven improvements.
Stifel analysts also lifted their price target for Tesla to $508 per share over the company’s ongoing robotaxi and FSD programs.
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.
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
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