Investor's Corner
Tesla crushes Q3 2019 results and returns to profitability
Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) third-quarter earnings for 2019 saw the electric car maker post $6.3 billion in revenue, meeting Wall Street estimates. The results, which were discussed at length in an Update Letter, were released after the closing bell on Wednesday, October 23.
The following are the key points in Tesla’s Q3 Update Letter.
EARNINGS
Tesla shareholders saw earnings per share of $1.91. In contrast, analysts polled by FactSet expected Tesla to report an adjusted quarterly loss of $0.46 a share for Q3 2019. Estimize, a crowdsourced platform that aggregates estimates from analysts, executives, fund managers, and academics, expected Tesla to report an adjusted loss of $0.29 per share.
REVENUE
Tesla reported revenue of $6.3 billion for the third quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet expected Tesla to report sales of $6.45 billion in the third quarter, while Estimize placed Tesla at a slightly more optimistic $6.60 billion.
Tesla Q3 results:
– Shanghai Giga ahead of schedule
– Model Y ahead of schedule
– Solar installs +48% from Q2
– GAAP profitable
– Positive free cash flow— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 23, 2019
RELATED: Top 5 things Tesla (TSLA) investors want to know from the Q3 2019 earnings call
Overall, Tesla’s results are a pleasant surprise for supporters of the electric car maker. Even CEO Elon Musk, after all, proved tempered with his expectations for the third quarter, stating during the second-quarter earnings call that he expects a small loss in Q3 2019. The company’s vehicle delivery figures in Q3 did not help this case, as the company was unable to meet Elon Musk’s internal goal of delivering 100,000 electric cars in the third quarter, delivering around 97,000 vehicles during the quarter.
TESLA MODEL Y PRODUCTION
Apart from its encouraging financials, Tesla also shared a number of optimistic updates for its vehicles and its budding Energy business. The Model Y, a crossover SUV that is expected to be even more popular than the widely-successful Tesla Model 3, has had its estimated deliveries move up to Summer 2020. During the vehicle’s unveiling, Musk proved conservative, giving an estimate of Fall 2020 (about a year from now) for the Model Y to begin customer deliveries.
GIGAFACTORY 3 PROGRESS
Tesla has also confirmed reports from China that Gigafactory 3 is progressing ahead of schedule. Previous reports from local media outlets have already hinted at this in recent months, and Tesla’s validation of these reports proved enough to shift the narrative back into the electric car maker’s favor.
“We are already producing full vehicles on a trial basis, from body, to paint and to general assembly, at Gigafactory Shanghai. We have cleared initial milestones toward our manufacturing license and are working towards finalizing the license and meeting other governmental requirements before we begin ramping production and delivery of vehicles from Shanghai,” Tesla stated.
TESLA SOLAR
Tesla’s Energy business also showed some growth in the third quarter. Long dormant and tempered compared to the company’s electric vehicle business, Tesla Energy has long been considered by skeptics as a neglected project. This has changed in the third quarter, with Tesla Solar installs moving up 48% compared to Q2 2019’s figures. These installations are further bolstered by new initiatives relating to the company’s energy business, such as the introduction of the Megapack, a massive 3 MW battery that could prove to be as disruptive as Tesla’s electric cars.
TESLA SEMI and GIGAFACTORY EUROPE
Tesla has been quite thin on updates surrounding the Tesla Semi, having focused more on Model 3. In its Q3 Update Letter, Tesla revealed that its all-electric long-hauler is poised to begin production in late 2020. An official announcement about the location of Gigafactory 4 in Europe is also expected to be released in 2021. “We are planning to produce limited volumes of Tesla Semi in 2020 and are hoping to announce soon the location of our European Gigafactory for production in 2021,” Tesla wrote.
As of writing, Tesla stock is up 21.03% at $ 308.25 per share in Thursday’s after-hours trading.
Following is Tesla’s Q3 2019 Update Letter.
Tesla Q3’19 Update Letter by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
Elon Musk
SpaceX IPO could push Elon Musk’s net worth past $1 trillion: Polymarket
The estimates were shared by the official Polymarket Money account on social media platform X.
Recent projections have outlined how a potential $1.75 trillion SpaceX IPO could generate historic returns for early investors. The projections suggest the offering would not only become the largest IPO in history but could also result in unprecedented windfalls for some of the company’s key investors.
The estimates were shared by the official Polymarket Money account on social media platform X.
As noted in a Polymarket Money analysis, Elon Musk invested $100 million into SpaceX in 2002 and currently owns approximately 42% of the company. At a $1.75 trillion valuation following SpaceX’s potential $1.75 trillion IPO, that stake would be worth roughly $735 billion.
Such a figure would dramatically expand Musk’s net worth. When combined with his holdings in Tesla Inc. and other ventures, a public debut at that level could position him as the world’s first trillionaire, depending on market conditions at the time of listing.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index currently lists Elon Musk with a net worth of $666 billion, though a notable portion of this is tied to his TSLA stock. Tesla currently holds a market cap of $1.51 trillion, and Elon Musk’s currently holds about 13% to 15% of the company’s outstanding common stock.
Founders Fund, co-founded by Peter Thiel, invested $20 million in SpaceX in 2008. Polymarket Money estimates the firm owns between 1.5% and 3% of the private space company. At a $1.75 trillion valuation, that range would translate to approximately $26.25 billion to $52.5 billion in value.
That return would represent one of the most significant venture capital outcomes in modern Silicon Valley history, with a growth of 131,150% to 262,400%.
Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, invested $900 million into SpaceX in 2015 and is estimated to hold between 6% and 7% of the private space firm. At the projected IPO valuation, that stake could be worth between $105 billion and $122.5 billion. That’s a growth of 11,566% to 14,455%.
Other major backers highlighted in the post include Fidelity Investments, Baillie Gifford, Valor Equity Partners, Bank of America, and Andreessen Horowitz, each potentially sitting on multibillion-dollar gains.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk hints Tesla investors will be rewarded heavily
“Hold onto your Tesla stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet,” Musk said.
Elon Musk recently hinted that he believes Tesla investors will be rewarded heavily if they continue to hold onto their shares, and he reiterated that in a new interview that the company released on its social accounts this week.
Musk is one of the most successful CEOs in the modern era and has mammothed competitors on the Forbes Net Worth List over the past year as his holdings in his various companies have continued to swell.
Tesla investors, especially those who have been holding shares for several years, have also felt substantial gains in their portfolios. Over the past five years, the stock is up over 78 percent. Since February 2019, nearly seven years ago to the day, the stock is up over 1,800 percent.
Musk said in the interview:
“Hold onto your Tesla stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet.”
Elon Musk in new interview: “Hold on to your $TSLA stock. It’s going to be worth a lot, I think. That’s my bet.” pic.twitter.com/cucirBuhq0
— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 26, 2026
It’s no secret Musk has been extremely bullish on his own companies, but Tesla in particular, because it is publicly traded.
However, the company has so many amazing projects that have an opportunity to revolutionize their respective industries. There is certainly a path to major growth on Wall Street for Tesla through its various future projects, including Optimus, Cybercab, Semi, and Unsupervised FSD.
- Optimus (Tesla’s humanoid robot): Musk has discussed its potential for tasks like childcare, walking dogs, or assisting elderly parents, positioning it as a massive long-term driver of company value.
- Cybercab (Tesla’s robotaxi/autonomous ride-hailing vehicle): a fully autonomous vehicle geared specifically for Tesla’s ride-sharing ambitions.
- Semi (Tesla’s electric truck, with mentions of expansion, like in Europe): brings Tesla into the commercial logistics sector.
- Unsupervised FSD (Full Self-Driving software achieving full autonomy without human supervision): turns every Tesla owner’s vehicle into a fully-autonomous vehicle upon release
These projects specifically are some of the highest-growth pillars Tesla has ever attempted to develop, especially in Musk’s eyes, as he has said Optimus will be the best-selling product of all-time.
Many analysts agree, but the bullish ones, like Cathie Wood of ARK Invest, are perhaps the one who believes Tesla has incredible potential on Wall Street, predicting a $2,600 price target for 2030, but this is not even including Optimus.
She told Bloomberg last March that she believes that the project will present a potential additive if Tesla can scale faster than anticipated.
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.
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.