Investor's Corner
Tesla shares rise amid positive analyst outlook after Gigafactory tour, Chinese rival’s underwhelming IPO
Tesla shares (NASDAQ:TSLA) are rising on Wednesday’s intraday, trading as high as $291.31 per share amid encouraging updates from analysts after a tour of Gigafactory 1, as well as seemingly improved investor sentiments over the company’s updates in management.
Tesla shares took a big blow last Friday amidst reports of former Chief Accounting Officer David H. Morton’s departure from the company after being on the job for just two months. Chief People Officer Gabrielle Toledano also announced that she would not be returning to the company after her ongoing leave. On top of this, CEO Elon Musk courted controversy once more after he seemingly smoked cannabis during a podcast with comedian Joe Rogan.
Amidst the noise from the latest executive departures and Elon Musk’s most recent controversy, Tesla stock saw some recovery on Monday. Baird analyst Ben Kallo, for one, gave the company a “Buy” rating over what he believed were the company’s improving fundamentals this Q3. Kallo also noted that last Friday’s sharp decline in Tesla stock’s price seemed to be a “mispricing.”
Tuesday saw the release of a note from Worm Capital analysts Eric Markowitz and Dan Crowley, who recently went on a tour of Tesla’s Gigafactory 1 in Nevada. The analysts’ note included several compelling updates from Martin Viecha, head of Tesla’s investor relations, who answered questions about the company’s battery tech, its software, and its upcoming vehicles. Viecha, for one, noted that Tesla is on track to achieve a battery cell cost of $100 per kWh by the end of the year, provided that commodity prices remain stable. The Tesla head of investor relations also stated that Tesla would be receiving machines from Grohmann Engineering which would aid the company in producing batteries more quickly and cost-effectively. Updates for the Tesla Semi and the $35,000 base Model 3 were also given.
While the encouraging updates from the Worm Capital analysts were noteworthy, investor sentiments appear to be improving for Tesla as well, particularly after it was announced that longtime problem-solver Jerome Guillen would now be serving as the company’s Head of Automotive, reporting directly to Elon Musk. Guillen is among the most hands-on of Tesla’s longtime executives, known for personally responding to early customers of the Model S during the vehicle’s initial rollout. Guillen appears to be a perfect fit for Tesla’s electric car business, and his promotion could serve as a reassurance for investors regarding Elon Musk being overstretched by his workload and responsibilities in the company.
Wednesday also saw the rather underwhelming IPO of NIO, a highly-anticipated Tesla rival from China. NIO is among the electric car makers that are expected to provide competition to Tesla, to the point where the company’s CEO is fondly dubbed as “The Elon Musk of China.” Among NIO’s first entries into the electric car segment is the ES8, a pure-electric, seven-seater SUV that is seen as a potential rival to the Tesla Model X.
A person familiar with the company’s IPO proceedings informed Reuters that NIO had initially hoped for a valuation of as much as $20 billion. Unfortunately for the company, the ongoing trade tensions between the United States and China, as well as its ongoing cash burn as it attempted to ramp the ES8’s production, weighed down the electric car maker’s IPO. NIO ultimately priced its shares at $6.26, just above the low end of its $6.25-$8.25 target price range. The company sold $1 billion in shares in the IPO, which still made it the third-largest US listing by a Chinese company this 2018.
Similar to Tesla, NIO incurred a significant net loss during the first half of the year, with the company incurring a net loss of $502.6 million on $6.95 million in revenues in the first six months of 2018. NIO noted that as of the end of August, it had delivered about 1,600 units of the ES8, and it still had another 15,778 unfulfilled reservations for the vehicle.
As of writing, Tesla shares are up 3.3% at $288.66 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
Ron Baron states Tesla and SpaceX are lifetime investments
Baron, one of Tesla’s longest-standing bulls, reiterated that his personal stake in the company remains fully intact even as volatility pressures the broader market.
Billionaire investor Ron Baron says he isn’t touching a single share of his personal Tesla holdings despite the recent selloff in the tech sector. Baron, one of Tesla’s longest-standing bulls, reiterated that his personal stake in the company remains fully intact even as volatility pressures the broader market.
Baron doubles down on Tesla
Speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box, Baron stated that he is largely unfazed by the market downturn, describing his approach during the selloff as simply “looking” for opportunities. He emphasized that Tesla remains the centerpiece of his long-term strategy, recalling that although Baron Funds once sold 30% of its Tesla position due to client pressure, he personally refused to trim any of his personal holdings.
“We sold 30% for clients. I did not sell personally a single share,” he said. Baron’s exposure highlighted this stance, stating that roughly 40% of his personal net worth is invested in Tesla alone. The legendary investor stated that he has already made about $8 billion from Tesla from an investment of $400 million when he started, and believes that figure could rise fivefold over the next decade as the company scales its technology, manufacturing, and autonomy roadmap.
A lifelong investment
Baron’s commitment extends beyond Tesla. He stated that he also holds about 25% of his personal wealth in SpaceX and another 35% in Baron mutual funds, creating a highly concentrated portfolio built around Elon Musk–led companies. During the interview, Baron revisited a decades-old promise he made to his fund’s board when he sought approval to invest in publicly traded companies.
“I told the board, ‘If you let me invest a certain amount of money, then I will promise that I won’t sell any of my stock. I will be the last person out of the stock,’” he said. “I will not sell a single share of my shares until my clients sold 100% of their shares. … And I don’t expect to sell in my lifetime Tesla or SpaceX.”
Watch Ron Baron’s CNBC interview below.
@teslarati :rotating_light: This is why you need to use off-peak rates at Tesla Superchargers! #tesla #evcharging #fyp ♬ Blue Moon – Muspace Lofi
Elon Musk
‘You chose ambition’: Tesla Chair hails shareholders for backing Elon Musk’s vision
Denholm stated that the vote highlighted TSLA investors’ continued confidence in both Musk’s leadership and Tesla’s vision for an autonomous, AI-driven future.
Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm has issued a letter to shareholders celebrating what she described as “overwhelming support” at this year’s Annual Meeting, framing the approval of Elon Musk’s trillion-dollar pay plan as a defining moment in Tesla’s mission.
Denholm stated that the vote highlighted TSLA investors’ continued confidence in both Musk’s leadership and Tesla’s vision for an autonomous, AI-driven future.
Denholm hails shareholder confidence
In her letter, which was posted by the electric vehicle maker on X through Tesla’s official handle, Denholm thanked investors for backing Proposals One, Three, and Four, items she said reaffirm Tesla’s “Master Plan Part IV” and its broader mission to accelerate sustainable prosperity. She characterized the shareholder vote as “a vote of confidence in our visionary leader, Elon,” crediting Musk with transforming Tesla into one of the most valuable companies in history.
“In a year when many tried to sow doubt and negativity, you chose a better future,” Denholm wrote. “You chose ambition. You chose to see what is possible. You chose to back the people who have been in the room since the earliest days, fighting for the mission that first brought us all together—a better world for humanity,” she wrote in her letter.
Her comments framed Musk’s pay package approval not only as a governance milestone but as a symbolic endorsement of Tesla’s long-term trajectory across autonomy, AI, and energy innovation.
“A whole new book” of innovation
Denholm highlighted Tesla’s push toward autonomy as the company’s next major growth phase, citing the Robotaxi program and Optimus humanoid robot as examples of bringing artificial intelligence “into the physical world.” She described this period as potentially “the largest value-creation event in Tesla’s history, and quite possibly in the history of humanity.”
The letter reaffirmed the board’s commitment to direct engagement with shareholders through Tesla’s online platform and live events. Denholm emphasized that feedback from investors “informs our strategy and strengthens us” as Tesla prepares for new technology rollouts and expanded AI capabilities.
“You, our shareholders, have given us the mandate and the runway to execute. We are humbled, and rest assured that we do not take that responsibility lightly… Thank you for believing in Tesla. Thank you for standing with us. We look forward to years of bold leadership and pioneering innovation, fueled by our commitment to creating a better future for all,” she wrote.
Elon Musk
Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey endorses Elon Musk Tesla pay package
Dorsey framed the pay package as an engineering and governance crossroads for Tesla.
Twitter co-founder and Square CEO Jack Dorsey has publicly backed Elon Musk’s leadership ahead of Tesla’s pivotal shareholder vote, which is expected to be decided later today at the company’s 2025 annual meeting.
Dorsey framed the pay package as an engineering and governance crossroads for Tesla.
Dorsey’s public nod framed as an engineering defense of Musk
In a post on X, Dorsey weighed in on Tesla’s post about being in a “critical inflection point.” As per the Twitter-co-founder, the vote on Musk’s 2025 performance award is not about compensation. Instead, it’s about ensuring the path for the company’s engineering in the coming years.
“This is not about compensation. it’s about ensuring a principled (and exciting!) engineering approach to the company’s future,” Dorsey wrote on his post, later stating that users of Cash app with TSLA shares would be able to vote for the CEO’s proposed 2025 performance award.
Elon Musk appreciated Dorsey’s endorsement, responding to the Twitter co-founder’s post with a heart emoji. Musk has been pretty thankful for the support for is fellow tech executives, also thanking Michael Dell recently, who also advocated for its proposed 2025 performance award.
Musk’s support
While Elon Musk’s 2025 performance award has received opposition from proxy advisors such as Glass Lewis and ISS, it has received quite a lot of support from longtime bulls such as ARK Invest, and, more recently, Schwab Asset Management following calls from TSLA retail shareholders.
“Schwab Asset Management’s approach to voting on proxy matters is thorough and deliberate. We utilize a structured process that focuses on protecting and promoting shareholder value. We apply our own internal guidelines and do not rely on recommendations from Glass Lewis or ISS. In accordance with this process, Schwab Asset Management intends to vote in favor of the 2025 CEO performance award proposal. We firmly believe that supporting this proposal aligns both management and shareholder interests, ensuring the best outcome for all parties involved,” Charles Schwab told Teslarati.
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