Connect with us

Investor's Corner

LIVE BLOG: Tesla (TSLA) Q2 2024 earnings call

Credit: Tesla

Published

on

Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) Q2 2024 earnings call comes on the heels of the company’s Q2 2024 Update Letter, which was released after the closing bell on Wednesday, July 23, 2024. 

Tesla posted total revenues of $25.5 billion, with automotive revenues of $19.878 billion in the second quarter. The company also posted non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.52 and GAAP EPS of $0.42 for Q2. Tesla posted $1.6 billion GAAP operating income after restructuring charges of $600 million in the second quarter as well.

The following are live updates from Tesla’s Q2 2024 earnings call. I will be updating this article in real-time, so please keep refreshing the page to view the latest updates on this story. The first entry starts at the bottom of the page. 

17:30 CDT: That’s a wrap! Thanks for reading and following along with our Live Blog! ‘Til next quarter!

Advertisement

17:27 CDT: Potential Trump Presidency could end IRA, and would Tesla have negative implications if IRA is ended, an analyst asks. Musk mulls the question and says “It would have some impact, but it would be devastation to our competitors.” Musk believes getting rid of the IRA would have minimal impact on Tesla. He continues to hound the point that Tesla’s value is highly reliant on autonomy and says if an investor does not believe the company will solve self-driving, they should sell their stock.

17:18 CDT: Musk breaks down the ride-sharing platform, highlighting the advantages: the vehicle could be used 24/7, and could be a full-time member of the vehicle fleet or a part-time contributor. Vehicle owner will share revenues with Tesla directly.

Rollout questions from Pierre Ferragu of New Street Research are met with confusion from Musk. “Every car will be capable,” as Ferragu asked if the early rollout of Robotaxi would be geofenced and small-scale.

17:14 CDT: Musk says GM canceled its self-driving, pedal-less, wheel-less vehicle was canceled because “it’s not up to par.” He says GM blamed regulators instead of being transparent about their self-driving efforts. “GM can’t make it work.”

Advertisement

17:12 CDT: Musk says Supervised FSD will come to China, Europe, “and other countries” upon the release of v12.6. It will submit regulatory approval when those versions are rolled out

17:04 CDT: Alex Potter of Piper Sandler asks about FSD licensing — “Can you elaborate on the mechanics of how this would work?” Potter asks if it would be “plug-and-play” or would OEMs have to adopt Tesla platform.

Musk confirms hardware would have to be upgraded: cameras and gateway with cellular and Wi-Fi capability would be required. “…it will be several years before we see this in volume,” Musk says. The CEO also adds that disclosure would depend on who the OEM licensing FSD is, and a volume minimum would be required.

16:59 CDT: Ben Kallo of Baird asks about the automotive revenue balance and how it will be impacted by AI. Musk says Optimus will likely be more of a contributor to company revenue than all other parts of the business combined. Musk believes 22 million units of humanoid robots will be demanded by customers worldwide, with Optimus leading the way. “We have all the ingredients; I think we are unique in having all of the ingredients [when it comes to humanoid robots],” Musk said. He also mentions ARK Invest’s analysis when factoring in AI and robotics.

Advertisement

Gigafactory Mexico is “paused” until after the election. Tesla will ramp up production at its existing factories.

16:58 CDT: Musk says he doesn’t want to give any details about future vehicles after an analyst question because it could cannibalize near-term sales.

16:53 CDT: Musk says Grok will make its way into Tesla vehicles at some point.

16:52 CDT: Does Tesla feel it is cheating people from the joy of owning a Tesla because it doesn’t advertise? Simply put, no. More people in Q1, 66% of deliveries were to people who never had a Tesla before

Advertisement

16:51 CDT: Optimus accessories question gets a chuckle from Musk and Co. No real update given by the team.

16:49 CDT: Musk says NVIDIA’s execution is “impressive” as he talks about Dojo. More effort on Dojo is needed to ensure training capability needed, Musk says. “We do see a path to being competitive with NVIDIA with Dojo,” he adds. “We kind of have no choice because the demand for NVIDIA is so high; it’s obviously their obligation to raise the price of GPUs to whatever the market will bear…We’ve really got to make Dojo work, and we will.”

16:47 CDT: A question regarding the 4680 production cell ramp yields Tesla to reveal 51 percent more cell production in Q2 than Q1. More than 1400 Cybertrucks worth of 4680 cells each week. The first validation Cybertruck with the dry-cathode process has been built. Tesla says it’s on track to launch dry-cathode in Q4, lowering costs for widespread cell production.

16:42 CDT – Tesla’s CFO takes the stage. Like Musk, he also extended his thanks to Tesla’s team for pulling through in the second quarter. The executive highlighted that Tesla is offering extremely competitive finance rates worldwide, so the best time to buy a Tesla is right now.

Advertisement

He also emphasized the fact that Tesla’s vehicles are the most American cars on the market today. “We pride ourselves as a company with the most American-made cars.” He also noted that “Our focus is to provide the most compelling products at the most competitve price.”

16:39 CDT – The CEO noted that the Tesla Robotaxi is now planned for an unveiling on October 20. The delay in the vehicle’s unveiling is due to changes that he asked for the vehicle.

As for Optimus, Tesla expects several thousands of humanoid robots produced and performing useful tasks at the company’s facilities by next year. Optimus Version 1 will start limited production by next year, Musk estimated.

Musk also highlighted that Tesla Energy is growing at an incredible pace. Tesla Energy may also double or triple production with both the company’s Lathrop and Shanghai Megafactories.

Advertisement

16:35 CDT – Elon Musk takes the stage for his opening remarks. He acknowledges that there is now more competition in EV market. He also noted that competitors have rolled out discounts on EV prices, which has been a bit challenging for Tesla — but not in the long term.

Despite these challenges, Musk thanked the Tesla team for achieving record revenues this past quarter. The CEO noted that Tesla would not get too deep into its product road map in the earnings call, though he did note that a more affordable model unveiling is expected in the first half of 2025.

Musk also highlighted that FSD is seeing a lot of progress, with version 12.5 having 5x the parameters of 12.4. He encourages Tesla owners to try out FSD. “Full Self-Driving will be a massive demand driver,” Musk said.

16:30 CDT – Tesla’s Q2 2024 earnings call begins — on time(!) The company’s new IR Head takes the stage. Elon Musk and other Tesla executives are present.

Advertisement

16:26 CDT – And the music starts. Here we go! Or rather, the actual waiting starts now.

16:20 CDT – Tesla stock is down 4.27% as of writing. This is not a small drop by any means, though it is more tempered than the drops from previous quarters. As per Barron’s, Tesla shares have moved an average of 11% over the past four quarterly reports.

16:15 CDT – Hello, everyone, and welcome to our live blog of Tesla’s second quarter 2024 earnings call. Tesla’s second quarter results are quite mixed, with the company beating estimates for revenue but falling short of expectations in earnings per share. Tesla also reported $1.6 billion GAAP operating income in Q2 after restructuring charges of $600 million. Elon Musk and Tesla’s other executives would likely provide some context on the company’s Q2 results in the upcoming earnings call.

Here’s the livestream of Tesla’s Q2 2024 earnings call.

Advertisement

Don’t hesitate to contact us with news tips. Just send a message to simon@teslarati.com to give us a heads up.

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.

Advertisement
Comments

Elon Musk

Tesla stock gets latest synopsis from Jim Cramer: ‘It’s actually a robotics company’

“Turns out it’s actually a robotics and Cybercab company, and I want to buy, buy, buy. Yes, Tesla’s the paper that turned into scissors in one session,” Cramer said.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla Optimus/X

Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) got its latest synopsis from Wall Street analyst Jim Cramer, who finally realized something that many fans of the company have known all along: it’s not a car company. Instead, it’s a robotics company.

In a recent note that was released after Tesla reported Earnings in late January, Cramer seemed to recognize that the underwhelming financials and overall performance of the automotive division were not representative of the current state of affairs.

Instead, we’re seeing a company transition itself away from its early identity, essentially evolving like a caterpillar into a butterfly.

The narrative of the Earnings Call was simple: We’re not a car company, at least not from a birds-eye view. We’re an AI and Robotics company, and we are transitioning to this quicker than most people realize.

Tesla stock gets another analysis from Jim Cramer, and investors will like it

Tesla’s Q4 Earnings Call featured plenty of analysis from CEO Elon Musk and others, and some of the more minor details of the call were even indicative of a company that is moving toward AI instead of its cars. For example, the Model S and Model X will be no more after Q2, as Musk said that they serve relatively no purpose for the future.

Instead, Tesla is shifting its focus to the vehicles catered for autonomy and its Robotaxi and self-driving efforts.

Cramer recognizes this:

“…we got results from Tesla, which actually beat numbers, but nobody cares about the numbers here, as electric vehicles are the past. And according to CEO Elon Musk, the future of this company comes down to Cybercabs and humanoid robots. Stock fell more than 3% the next day. That may be because their capital expenditures budget was higher than expected, or maybe people wanted more details from the new businesses. At this point, I think Musk acolytes might be more excited about SpaceX, which is planning to come public later this year.”

He continued, highlighting the company’s true transition away from vehicles to its Cybercab, Optimus, and AI ambitions:

“I know it’s hard to believe how quickly this market can change its attitude. Last night, I heard a disastrous car company speak. Turns out it’s actually a robotics and Cybercab company, and I want to buy, buy, buy. Yes, Tesla’s the paper that turned into scissors in one session. I didn’t like it as a car company. Boy, I love it as a Cybercab and humanoid robot juggernaut. Call me a buyer and give me five robots while I’m at it.”

Cramer’s narrative seems to fit that of the most bullish Tesla investors. Anyone who is labeled a “permabull” has been echoing a similar sentiment over the past several years: Tesla is not a car company any longer.

Instead, the true focus is on the future and the potential that AI and Robotics bring to the company. It is truly difficult to put Tesla shares in the same group as companies like Ford, General Motors, and others.

Tesla shares are down less than half a percent at the time of publishing, trading at $423.69.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Tesla to a $100T market cap? Elon Musk’s response may shock you

Published

on

tesla elon musk

There are a lot of Tesla bulls out there who have astronomical expectations for the company, especially as its arm of reach has gone well past automotive and energy and entered artificial intelligence and robotics.

However, some of the most bullish Tesla investors believe the company could become worth $100 trillion, and CEO Elon Musk does not believe that number is completely out of the question, even if it sounds almost ridiculous.

To put that number into perspective, the top ten most valuable companies in the world — NVIDIA, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, TSMC, Meta, Saudi Aramco, Broadcom, and Tesla — are worth roughly $26 trillion.

Will Tesla join the fold? Predicting a triple merger with SpaceX and xAI

Cathie Wood of ARK Invest believes the number is reasonable considering Tesla’s long-reaching industry ambitions:

“…in the world of AI, what do you have to have to win? You have to have proprietary data, and think about all the proprietary data he has, different kinds of proprietary data. Tesla, the language of the road; Neuralink, multiomics data; nobody else has that data. X, nobody else has that data either. I could see $100 trillion. I think it’s going to happen because of convergence. I think Tesla is the leading candidate [for $100 trillion] for the reason I just said.”

Musk said late last year that all of his companies seem to be “heading toward convergence,” and it’s started to come to fruition. Tesla invested in xAI, as revealed in its Q4 Earnings Shareholder Deck, and SpaceX recently acquired xAI, marking the first step in the potential for a massive umbrella of companies under Musk’s watch.

SpaceX officially acquires xAI, merging rockets with AI expertise

Now that it is happening, it seems Musk is even more enthusiastic about a massive valuation that would swell to nearly four-times the value of the top ten most valuable companies in the world currently, as he said on X, the idea of a $100 trillion valuation is “not impossible.”

Tesla is not just a car company. With its many projects, including the launch of Robotaxi, the progress of the Optimus robot, and its AI ambitions, it has the potential to continue gaining value at an accelerating rate.

Musk’s comments show his confidence in Tesla’s numerous projects, especially as some begin to mature and some head toward their initial stages.

Continue Reading

Elon Musk

Tesla director pay lawsuit sees lawyer fees slashed by $100 million

The ruling leaves the case’s underlying settlement intact while significantly reducing what the plaintiffs’ attorneys will receive.

Published

on

Credit: Tesla China

The Delaware Supreme Court has cut more than $100 million from a legal fee award tied to a shareholder lawsuit challenging compensation paid to Tesla directors between 2017 and 2020. 

The ruling leaves the case’s underlying settlement intact while significantly reducing what the plaintiffs’ attorneys will receive.

Delaware Supreme Court trims legal fees

As noted in a Bloomberg Law report, the case targeted pay granted to Tesla directors, including CEO Elon Musk, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, Kimbal Musk, and Rupert Murdoch. The Delaware Chancery Court had awarded $176 million to the plaintiffs. Tesla’s board must also return stock options and forego years worth of pay. 

As per Chief Justice Collins J. Seitz Jr. in an opinion for the Delaware Supreme Court’s full five-member panel, however, the decision of the Delaware Chancery Court to award $176 million to a pension fund’s law firm “erred by including in its financial benefit analysis the intrinsic value” of options being returned by Tesla’s board.

Advertisement

The justices then reduced the fee award from $176 million to $70.9 million. “As we measure it, $71 million reflects a reasonable fee for counsel’s efforts and does not result in a windfall,” Chief Justice Seitz wrote.

Other settlement terms still intact

The Supreme Court upheld the settlement itself, which requires Tesla’s board to return stock and options valued at up to $735 million and to forgo three years of additional compensation worth about $184 million. 

Tesla argued during oral arguments that a fee award closer to $70 million would be appropriate. Interestingly enough, back in October, Justice Karen L. Valihura noted that the $176 award was $60 million more than the Delaware judiciary’s budget from the previous year. This was quite interesting as the case was “settled midstream.”

The lawsuit was brought by a pension fund on behalf of Tesla shareholders and focused exclusively on director pay during the 2017–2020 period. The case is separate from other high-profile compensation disputes involving Elon Musk.

Advertisement

Tesla Litigation by Simon Alvarez

Continue Reading