Last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk stated that he would probably not attend the electric vehicle maker’s earnings calls anymore unless there was something really important he needed to say. The upcoming Q1 2022 Q&A session appears to be one of these calls.
Tesla is poised to hold its first-quarter earnings call later today at around 4:30 p.m. CT / 5:30 p.m. PT. Prior to this, the company would also be releasing its Q1 2022 Update Letter, which should provide investors with information pertaining to Tesla’s financial performance in the first quarter. The upcoming earnings call will likely be important, especially considering the shutdown of Giga Shanghai in China.
With the Tesla community eagerly awaiting the release of the Q1 2022 Update Letter and the company’s subsequent earnings call, it was no surprise that Elon Musk was asked if he would be present at today’s Q&A session. In a post on Twitter, Musk confirmed that he would indeed be attending Tesla’s first-quarter 2022 earnings call.
Considering Musk’s previous statements, it appears that the CEO has a number of important announcements to make. Speculations are high that Musk would provide some insights on Giga Shanghai’s immediate strategy, especially considering the company’s “closed-loop” system and the three weeks’ worth of vehicle production that was lost when the facility was shut down due to the city’s stringent anti-Covid measures.
Musk may also provide some insights on his planned Twitter acquisition. Tesla bear and Barclays analyst Brian Johnson, for one, argued that Musk’s Twitter acquisition attempt is but a “smokescreen” to shield Tesla from a possible weak Q2 2022 guidance. Wells Fargo analyst Colin Langan, on the other hand, noted that acquiring the social media platform may result in the CEO selling TSLA stock once more. Musk could use the upcoming earnings call to clarify his strategy for its Twitter acquisition attempt.
Wall Street has high expectations for Tesla this first quarter despite the pressure felt by Giga Shanghai during the final weeks of March. Tesla delivered 310,048 cars in Q1 2022 while producing 305,407. The company would then have to report earnings per share of $2.27 and revenue of $17.8 billion to beat the Street’s expectations.
Disclaimer: I am long TSLA.
Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.
