

Investor's Corner
Tesla’s competitors are realizing that making good electric cars is not so easy
For years, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) critics have argued that the electric car maker is nothing special, incompetent even, to the point where any other company, veteran or newcomer, could easily beat the Silicon Valley-based carmaker in their own game. Fast forward to November 2019, and it is starting to become evident that perhaps Tesla is not so easy to overtake after all.
Take NIO, for example, a company that is perceived as “China’s Tesla” several times in the past. Aggressive and ambitious, NIO was supported by TSLA critics as a rival that has the potential to beat the American electric car maker at its own game. Yet, inasmuch as the greater part of 2019 was cruel to Tesla, so was it difficult for NIO.
Over the past few months, NIO was hit by a perfect storm including a reduction of government subsidies, trade war uncertainties, and what appears to be decreasing demand in its home country. This has resulted in NIO cutting over 2,000 jobs to optimize its operations. Its shares, which are publicly traded just like TSLA stock, have also plummeted.
One could argue that NIO is encountering difficulties since it is still a young company. But even veteran automakers are also running into issues with their respective EV programs. Take the Volkswagen Group’s Audi, for example. The Audi e-tron is a well-reviewed premium electric vehicle with a price that is comparable to the Model X, but it features over 100 miles less range from a battery that is nearly as big as the pack in Tesla’s SUV. Audi’s recall of half of all e-trons sold since the vehicle was launched due to a fire risk further highlights the difficulty of the EV market.
Even Jaguar with the award-winning I-PACE was no exception. The I-PACE is quite the darling of the motoring industry, having swept over 60 awards since its release. Yet, even the stunningly-designed vehicle is seeing its sales decline, and owners are reporting issues such as less-than-expected range. Similar to the Audi e-tron, the I-PACE was also hit by a recall last June due to issues with its regenerative braking system, which could increase the risk of collisions.
Among the veterans, Porsche appears to be the one that is doing the best. The Taycan is well-received by both the pro and anti-Tesla community, but even the track-capable monster from Stuttgart struggles with range and its price. The Taycan is every bit the monster that the sports car maker promised, but the vehicle’s range falls far below the 310 miles that were expected years before its release. Its price has also ballooned, with a well-equipped Taycan Turbo S setting buyers back far above the $200,000 range.
The difficulty of the electric car industry could not be highlighted better than Dyson, a British company that made its mark through its innovative, premium fans and vacuum cleaners. Dyson attempted to enter the EV market, but after spending $1.3 billion, the company decided to abandon its efforts, deeming the initiative as commercially unviable.
Seeing all these challenges, one can almost see why Tesla CEO Elon Musk has described Tesla as an exercise in insanity. A company with nothing but a prototype sports car and an ambition to take on the auto industry in pre-2008 recession America, after all, could only be described as either courageous or absolutely crazy. Yet, beyond all the trials and tribulations, Tesla remains standing, and it is now positioned to lead in the EV market.
It took a lot of close calls, brushes with potential death, and Elon Musk’s self-inflicted wounds, but it is starting to become evident that maybe, just maybe, Tesla’s long-term bet is finally paying off. In the emerging EV era, it would be difficult to catch a company that has its own rapid charging network, battery technology, a habit of constant software upgrades, and an ecosystem of vehicles and energy products that highlight a key goal — to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.
Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package hits first adversity from proxy firm
ISS said the size of the pay package will enable Musk to have access to “extraordinarily high pay opportunities over the next ten years,” and it will have an impact on future packages because it will “reduce the board’s ability to meaningfully adjust future pay levels.”

Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package, which was proposed by the company last month, has hit its first bit of adversity from proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS).
Musk has called the firm “ISIS,” a play on its name relating it to the terrorist organization, in the past.
“ISIS”
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 27, 2021
The pay package aims to lock in Musk to the CEO role at Tesla for the next decade, as it will only be paid in full if he is able to unlock each tranche based on company growth, which will reward shareholders.
However, the sum is incredibly large and would give Musk the ability to become the first trillionaire in history, based on his holdings. This is precisely why ISS is advising shareholders to vote against the pay plan.
The group said that Musk’s pay package will lock him in, which is the goal of the Board, and it is especially important to do this because of his “track record and vision.”
However, it also said the size of the pay package will enable Musk to have access to “extraordinarily high pay opportunities over the next ten years,” and it will have an impact on future packages because it will “reduce the board’s ability to meaningfully adjust future pay levels.”
The release from ISS called the size of Musk’s pay package “astronomical” and said its design could continue to pay the CEO massive amounts of money for even partially achieving the goals. This could end up in potential dilution for existing investors.
If Musk were to reach all of the tranches, Tesla’s market cap could reach up to $8.5 trillion, which would make it the most valuable company in the world.
Tesla has made its own attempts to woo shareholders into voting for the pay package, which it feels is crucial not only for retaining Musk but also for continuing to create value for shareholders.
Tesla launched an ad for Elon Musk’s pay package on Paramount+
Musk has also said he would like to have more ownership control of Tesla, so he would not have as much of an issue with who he calls “activist shareholders.”
Investor's Corner
Barclays lifts Tesla price target ahead of Q3 earnings amid AI momentum
Analyst Dan Levy adjusted his price target for TSLA stock from $275 to $350, while maintaining an “Equal Weight” rating for the EV maker.

Barclays has raised its price target for Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA), with the firm’s analysts stating that the electric vehicle maker is approaching its Q3 earnings with two contrasting “stories.”
Analyst Dan Levy adjusted his price target for TSLA stock from $275 to $350, while maintaining an “Equal Weight” rating for the EV maker.
Tesla’s AI and autonomy narrative
Levy told investors that Tesla’s “accelerating autonomous and AI narrative,” amplified by CEO Elon Musk’s proposed compensation package, is energizing market sentiment. The analyst stated that expectations for a Q3 earnings-per-share beat are supported by improved vehicle delivery volumes and stronger-than-expected gross margins, as noted in a TipRanks report.
Tesla has been increasingly positioning itself as an AI-driven company, with Elon Musk frequently emphasizing the long-term potential of its Full Self-Driving (FSD) software and products like Optimus, both of which are heavily driven by AI. The company’s AI focus has also drawn the support of key companies like Nvidia, one of the world’s largest companies today.
Still cautious on TSLA
Despite bullish AI sentiments, Barclays maintained its caution on Tesla’s underlying business metrics. Levy described the firm’s stance as “leaning neutral to slightly negative” heading into the Q3 earnings call, citing concerns about near-term fundamentals of the electric vehicle maker.
Barclays is not the only firm that has expressed its concerns about TSLA stock recently. As per previous reports, BNP Paribas Exane also shared an “Underperform” rating on the company due to its two biggest products, the Robotaxi and Optimus, still generating “zero sales today, yet inform ~75% of our ~$1.02 trillion price target.” BNP Paribas, however, also estimated that Tesla will have an estimated 525,000 active Robotaxis by 2030, 17 million cumulative Optimus robot deliveries by 2040, and more than 11 million FSD subscriptions by 2030.
Investor's Corner
BNP Paribas Exane initiates Tesla coverage with “Underperform” rating
The firm’s projections for Tesla still include an estimated 525,000 active Robotaxis by 2030.

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) has received a bearish call from BNP Paribas Exane, which initiated coverage on the stock with an Underperform rating and a $307 price target, about 30% below current levels.
The firm’s analysts argued that Tesla’s valuation is driven heavily by artificial intelligence ventures such as the Robotaxi and Optimus, which are both still not producing any sales today.
Tesla’s valuation
In its note, BNP Paribas Exane stated that Tesla’s two AI-led programs, the Robotaxi and Optimus robots, generate “zero sales today, yet inform ~75% of our ~$1.02 trillion price target.” The research firm’s model projected a maximum bull-case valuation of $2.7 trillion through 2040, but after discounting milestone probabilities, its base-case valuation remained at $1.02 trillion.
The analysts described their outlook as optimistic toward Tesla’s AI ventures but cautioned that the stock’s “unfavorable risk/reward is clear,” adding that consensus earnings expectations for 2026 remain too high. Tesla’s market cap currently stands around $1.44 trillion with a trailing twelve-month revenue of $92.7 billion, which BNP Paribas argued does not justify Tesla’s P/E ratio of 258.59, as noted in an Investing.com report.
Tesla and its peers
BNP Paribas Exane’s report also included a comparative study of the “Magnificent Seven,” finding Tesla’s current market valuation as rather aggressive. “Our unique comparative analysis of the ‘Mag 7’ reveals the extreme nature of TSLA’s valuation, as the market implicitly says TSLA’s 2035 earnings (~55% of which will be driven by Robotaxi & Optimus, w/ zero sales now) have the same level of risk & value-appropriation as the ‘Mag 6’s’ 2026 earnings,” the firm noted.
The firm’s projections for Tesla include an estimated 525,000 active Robotaxis by 2030, 17 million cumulative Optimus robot deliveries by 2040 priced above $20,000 each, and more than 11 million Full Self-Driving subscriptions by 2030. Interestingly enough, these seem to be rather optimistic projections for one of the electric vehicle maker’s more bearish estimates today.
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