Investor's Corner
Tesla (TSLA) analysts settle on bullish outlooks after impressive Q3 Earnings
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) revealed an impressive third-quarter in terms of production, deliveries, and profitability during its Q3 Earnings Call on October 21st. The quarter was referred to as “our best quarter in history” by CEO Elon Musk, and analysts at various Wall Street firms have revised their price target outlooks for the electric automaker.
Analysts at Baird, JMP Securities, Oppenheimer, Wedbush, and Canaccord Genuity all revised their outlooks for Tesla’s stock by increasing their price targets. The boost in PTs without a doubt came from Tesla’s impressive Q3 performance, but each analyst had their own reasoning for the figure they came up with.
Baird
Baird analysts Ben Kallo and David Katter bumped their price target to $488 from $450, marking the second time they’ve upgraded Tesla’s outlook in October. The Baird analysts also upgraded TSLA shares to “Outperform.” Interestingly, Kallo and Katter’s note to investors indicated that they were wrong for downgrading the stock to a “Neutral” rating in January, stating that their move was “too early.” After their revised “Neutral” rating, TSLA shares soared over 400% on the year.
“Clearly incorrect, we are now upgrading share as we think TSLA has the substantial access and ability to deploy capital, and has multiple ways to drive substantial revenue growth,” Baird’s note said to investors. “Tesla’s competitive moat over peers is substantial (and growing, enabled buy rapid capital deployment) and we think it is unlikely traditional OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] will be able to effectively compete over time.”
JMP Securities
Joseph Osha and Hilary Cauley of JMP Securities boosted their price targets for TSLA stock to $516 after the Q3 Earnings Call. The two analysts also upgraded the stock with an “Outperform” rating.
“In terms of the stock, we have tried to keep our eye on the horizon as opposed to being influenced by quarter-to-quarter developments. Even though commentary yesterday caused us to raise our outlook for 2021, it does not by itself give us cause to change our stance on the stock,” JMP wrote to investors in a note. “That said, we do believe the outlook for margins and for cash flow generation over the next several years appears to be higher than we thought. This impacts not only our financial model, but also the level of risk we assign to our 2025 outcome and the multiple we apply.”
Oppenheimer
Oppenheimer analyst Colin Rusch boosted his price target to $486 from $451 and also placed an “Outperform” rating on TSLA stock. Rusch is a notable Tesla bull who has advised long-term investors to buy the automaker’s stock “on any near-term weakness.” Additionally, Rusch has stated in the past that perhaps Tesla’s biggest advantage is software and Over-the-Air Updates, which have stumped legacy automakers.
In terms of the Q3 Earnings Call, Rusch’s outlook is based on financials and Tesla’s future developments. “We are encouraged by improving manufacturing margins and factory throughput, which gives us comfort in raising out-year GM estimates and PT,” he said. “We are watching closing for accelerating growth in recurring revenue from insurance, financing, software-driven applications like robotaxi’s, which may begin to shift valuation multiples higher.”
Wedbush
Wedbush’s Dan Ives boosted his Bull Case price target to $800 following the Q3 Earnings Call and reflects on the potential of Giga Shanghai’s output as a clear indicator of Tesla’s future success. While his base price target remained at $500 with a “Neutral” rating, Ives does see overwhelming EV demand growth playing out in Tesla’s favor.
“China remains the ‘hearts and lungs’ of the Tesla demand growth story playing out over the next year along with underlying Europe EV strength playing out in the field,” Ives wrote. “We are raising our bull case from $700 to $800 reflecting these improving demand/profitability dynamics heading into 2021 for Tesla despite a soft macro and COVID backdrop.”
Canaccord Genuity
Jed Dorsheimer of Canaccord Genuity maintained a “Hold” rating but boosted his price target to $419 from $377. Dorsheimer’s main outlook has been boosted based on Tesla’s focus on automotive manufacturing, which has been a main concern moving forward to increase efficiency and production output.
“TSLA remains a juggernaut in the EV space that deserves credit for the vision and willingness to challenge the status quo in auto manufacturing. We maintain our HOLD rating though, as we feel the bull-bear debate is unlikely to abate and valuation appears rich by any standard,” Dorsheimer’s note to investors stated.
Tesla recorded its fifth-consecutive quarterly profit, non-GAAP earnings of $0.76 per share, $809M GAAP operating income and a $5.9B increase in cash and cash equivalents.
Tesla (TSLA) crushes Q3 earnings with record profit, accelerates global growth
Disclaimer: Joey Klender is a TSLA Shareholder.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is set to hold its Earnings Call for the first quarter of 2026 on Wednesday, and there are a lot of interesting things that are swirling around in terms of speculation from investors.
With the company’s executives, including CEO Elon Musk, answering a handful of questions that investors submit through the Say platform, fans want to know a lot of things about a lot of things.
These five questions come from Retail Investors, who are normal, everyday shareholders:
- When will we have the Optimus v3 reveal? When will Optimus production start, since we ended the Model S and Model X production earlier than mid-year? What’s the expected Optimus production rate exiting this year? What are the initial targeted skills?
- What milestones are you targeting for unsupervised FSD and Robotaxi expansion beyond Austin this year, and how will that drive recurring revenue?
- How will Hardware 3 cars reach Unsupervised Full Self-Driving?
- When do you expect Unsupervised Full Self-Driving to reach customer cars?
- When will Robotaxi expand past its current limited rollout?
Additionally, these are currently the three questions that are slated to be answered by Institutional Firms, which also answer a handful of questions during the call:
- Now that FSD has been approved in the Netherlands and is expected to launch across Europe this summer, can you discuss your Robotaxi strategy for the region?
- What enabled you to finish the AI5 tapeout early and were there any changes to the original vision? Last week, Elon said AI5 will go into Optimus and the Supercomputer, but one month ago said it would go into the Robotaxi. Has AI5 been dropped from the vehicle roadmap?
- Given the recent NHTSA incident filings, can you update us on the Robotaxi safety data? If safety validation remains the primary bottleneck, why not deploy thousands of vehicles to accelerate the removal of the safety driver?
The questions range through every current Tesla project, including FSD expansion and Optimus. However, many of the answers we will get will likely be repetitive answers we’ve heard in the past.
This is especially pertinent when the questions about when Unsupervised FSD will reach customer cars: we know Musk will say that it will happen this year. Is Tesla capable of that? Maybe. But a more transparent answer that is more revealing of a true timeline would be appreciated.
Hardware 3 owners are anxiously awaiting the arrival of FSD v14 Lite, which was promised to them last year for a release sometime this year.
The Earnings Call is set to take place on Wednesday at market close.
Elon Musk
Tesla FSD in Europe vs. US: It’s not what you think
Tesla FSD is approved in the Netherlands, but the European version differs from what US drivers use.
On April 10, 2026, the Dutch vehicle authority RDW granted Tesla the first European type approval for Full Self-Driving Supervised, making the Netherlands the first country on the continent to authorize Tesla’s semi-autonomous system for customer use on public roads.
As Teslarati reported, the RDW approval followed 18 months of testing, more than 1.6 million kilometers driven on EU roads, 13,000 customer ride-alongs, and documentation covering over 400 compliance requirements. Tesla Europe had been running public demo drives through cities like Amsterdam and Eindhoven since early 2026, giving passengers their first experience of the system on European streets.
The European version of FSD is not the same software US drivers use. The RDW’s own statement is direct, noting that the software versions and functionalities in the US and Europe “are therefore not comparable one-to-one.” We’ve compile a table below that captures the most significant differences between US-based Tesla FSD vs. European Tesla FSD that’s based on what regulators and Tesla have publicly confirmed.
| Feature | FSD US | FSD Europe (Netherlands) |
| Regulatory framework | Self-certification, post-market oversight | Pre-market type approval required (UN R-171 + Article 39) |
| Hands requirement | Hands-off permitted on highway | Hands must be available to take over immediately |
| Auto turning from stop lights | Available — navigates intersections, turns, and traffic signals autonomously | Available in EU build — confirmed in Amsterdam demo footage handling unprotected turns and signalized intersections |
| Driving modes | Multiple profiles including a more aggressive “Mad Max” mode | EU build is more conservative by default and errs on the side of restraint when it cannot confirm the limit |
| Summon | Available — Smart Summon navigates parking lots to driver | Status unclear — not confirmed as part of the RDW-approved feature set; urban FSD approval targeted separately for 2027 |
| Driver monitoring | Camera-based eye tracking | Stricter continuous monitoring with more frequent intervention alerts |
| Software version | FSD v14.3 | EU-specific builds that must be separately validated by RDW |
| Geographic restriction | US, Canada, China, Mexico, Australia, NZ, South Korea | Netherlands only; EU-wide vote pending summer 2026 |
| Subscription price | $99/month | €99/month |
| Full urban FSD scope | Available | Partial — separate urban application planned for 2027 |
The approval comes as Tesla is under real pressure to grow FSD subscriptions globally. Musk’s 2025 CEO compensation package, approved by shareholders, includes a milestone requiring 10 million active FSD subscriptions as one condition for his stock awards to vest. Tesla hit one million subscriptions during its Q4 2025 earnings call, which is a meaningful start, but still a long way from the target. Opening Europe as a market for subscriptions, rather than just hardware sales, directly accelerates that number.
Tesla has said it anticipates EU-wide recognition of the Dutch approval during summer 2026, which would extend FSD access to Germany, France, and other major markets through a mutual recognition process without each country repeating the full 18-month review. That timeline is Tesla’s projection, not a confirmed regulatory outcome. As Musk acknowledged at Davos in January 2026, “We hope to get Supervised Full Self-Driving approval in Europe, hopefully next month.”
Elon Musk
Tesla Supercharger for Business exposes jaw-dropping ROI gap between best and worst locations
Tesla’s new Supercharger for Business calculator reveals an eye-opening all-in cost and location-based ROI projections.
Tesla has launched an online calculator for its Supercharger for Business program, giving property owners their first transparent look at what it really costs to install Superchargers on site and what kind of return they can expect.
The program itself launched in September 2025, allowing businesses to purchase and operate Supercharger hardware on their own property while Tesla handles installation, maintenance, software, and 24/7 driver support. As Teslarati reported at launch, hosts also get their logo placed on the chargers and their location integrated into Tesla’s in-car navigation, meaning drivers are actively routed there. The stalls are open to all EVs, not just Teslas.
We launched Supercharger for Business in 2025 to help companies get charging right. We found simplicity and transparency to be a problem in this industry.
We’re now sharing pricing and a financial calculator to help make informed decisions. The goal is to accelerate investments,…
— Tesla Charging (@TeslaCharging) April 8, 2026
The new online calculator, announced by Tesla on Wednesday with the note that “simplicity and transparency” have been a problem in the industry, lets any business enter a U.S. address and get a real cost and revenue model. A standard 8-stall V4 Supercharger site runs approximately $500,000 in hardware and $55,000 per post for installation, bringing an all-in price just shy of $1 million. Tesla charges a flat $0.10 per kWh fee to cover software, billing, and network operations. Businesses set their own retail price and keep the margin above that fee.
Taking a look at Tesla’s Supercharger for Business online calculator, we can see that ROI is not uniform, and the gap between a strong location and a poor one can stretch the breakeven point by several years.
The biggest driver is foot traffic and how long people stay. A busy rest station, hotel, or outlet mall brings in repeat visitors who need to charge while they’re already stopped, pushing utilization numbers higher and shortening payback time.
Tesla Supercharger for Business ROI calculator
Local electricity rates matter just as much on the cost side. Markets like California carry some of the highest commercial electricity rates in the country, which eats into the margin between what a host pays per kWh and what they charge drivers. At the same time, dense urban areas with high EV adoption tend to support higher retail charging prices, which can offset that cost if demand is strong enough. Weather also plays a role. Cold climates reduce battery efficiency and increase charging frequency, but they can also suppress utilization in winter months if drivers avoid stopping in exposed outdoor locations. Suburban and rural sites face a different problem: lower baseline EV traffic, which means a site with cheaper power and lower operating costs can still take longer to pay back simply because the stalls sit idle more often. Tesla’s calculator uses real fleet data to pre-fill utilization estimates by ZIP code, so businesses can run their specific address against these variables rather than relying on averages.
The program has seen real adoption. Wawa, already the largest host of Tesla Superchargers with over 2,100 stalls across 223 locations, opened its first fully owned and branded site in Alachua, Florida earlier this year. Francis Energy of Oklahoma and the city of Alpharetta, Georgia have also deployed branded stations through the program, as Teslarati covered in January.
Tesla now exceeds 80,000 Supercharger stalls worldwide, and the calculator makes the economic case for accelerating that number through private investment rather than company-owned sites alone.
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