Tesla’s (NASDAQ:TSLA) third-quarter earnings for 2020 saw the electric car maker post $8.771 billion in revenue, beating Wall Street’s expectations. The results, which were discussed at length in an Update Letter, were released after the closing bell on Wednesday, October 21, 2020.
Tesla’s third-quarter was impressive, with the electric car maker producing a total of 145,036 vehicles comprised of 16,992 Model S and Model X and 128,044 Model 3 and Model Y. The company also delivered 139,300 vehicles comprised of 124,100 Model 3 and Model Y, as well as 15,200 Model S and Model X.
Tesla’s strong Q3 results were likely due to the Model Y ramp in the United States and the increasing Model 3 production at Gigafactory Shanghai. With these, expectations were high that Tesla would once more post a profit this third quarter.
The following are the key points in Tesla’s Q3 2020 Update Letter.
REVENUE
Tesla reported a revenue of $8.771 billion for the third quarter, beating Wall Street’s expectations. In comparison, Wall Street expected Tesla’s Q3 2020 revenue at $8.28 billion, as per FactSet consensus. With these results, Tesla’s revenue has grown 39% year-over-year, and this was achieved through increasing vehicle deliveries despite the pandemic.
EARNINGS
Tesla shareholders saw non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.76 in the third quarter. In comparison, Wall Street expected Tesla to report a gain of $0.57 per share. Estimize’s numbers were a bit more optimistic at $0.65 per share.
PROFITABILITY
In the third quarter, Tesla posted $809M GAAP operating income, resulting in a 9.2% operating margin. The company also ended the third quarter with $331M GAAP net income and $874M non-GAAP net income (ex-SBC).
CASH
Despite its multiple simultaneous projects, Tesla’s cash remains to be formidable. As noted in the company’s Q3 2020 Update Letter, Tesla currently has $5.9B increase in our cash and cash equivalents in Q3 to $14.5B. This was largely due to the company’s decision to raise $5.0B of capital.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Record vehicle deliveries, profitability and free cash flow
- Buildout of three new factories on three continents continues as planned
- First step of FSD beta rollout started in Oct. 2020
- Vehicle capacity between the Fremont Factory and Gigafactory Shanghai currently stands at 840,000.
- Full Self-Driving for city streets has been rolled out to a limited number of drivers that are part of the company’s Early Access Program.
- Tesla Energy reached record deployments of 759 MWh in Q3, with Megapack production more than doubling in the third quarter.
Tesla’s Q3 2020 Update Letter could be accessed below.
TSLA-Q3-2020-Update by Simon Alvarez on Scribd