Investor's Corner
Tesla’s corporate family rating upgraded to Ba1 by Moody’s Investors Services
Tesla’s corporate family rating has been upgraded two levels from Ba3 to Ba1 by Moody’s Investors Services, citing a positive outlook that the automaker will maintain its position as the leading manufacturer of EVs.
The rating Ba1 reflects Moody’s view that Tesla’s reputation as the leader of the EV industry will continue and perhaps expand as Tesla broadens its potential consumer footprint in the United States, Europe, and China. The expansion of its products and consumer base could increase deliveries to an anticipated 1.4 million units in 2022, up nearly 50% from Tesla’s 936,000 vehicle delivery mark that it accomplished in 2021. The increased manufacturing and delivery rate will be supplemented by two new factories that are expected to be operational soon: Gigafactory Texas and Gigafactory Berlin.
If Tesla was perfect, it would not have a Ba1 rating, however. While the rating is an improvement from its previous position, Moody’s still has reservations regarding the company’s reliance on the Model 3 and Model Y. This “narrowly reliant” product lineup gives Moody’s some reservations regarding Tesla’s potential for more accelerated growth. However, the Model 3 and Model Y are the most affordable vehicles in Tesla’s lineup and also pack some of the automaker’s more recent technology for a fraction of the price of its flagship Model S and Model X vehicles.
Moody’s also stated that Tesla’s manufacturing processes support the firm’s expectations for an EBITA margin to increase to 16 percent in 2022 from 12 percent in 2021. “While the margin contribution from the sale of regulatory emission credits will likely decrease, the sale of the credits added approximately 330 basis points to margin in the 12 months ended September 2021. Moody’s expects that a more competitive offering of battery electric vehicles by other automakers could start to exert some pressure on margins in 2023,” the firm added. Liquidity and cash balances are healthy, but Moody’s is keeping an eye on Tesla’s $2.3 billion asset-based revolving credit and its limitations, as an unpaid principal balance stood at $1.9 billion as of September 30, 2021.
Tesla could be upgraded again if its global footprint expands, which could occur through potential deals in India or Turkey. Additionally, if Tesla maintains a strong competitive presence as more automakers enter the sector with more robust models that are better suited against Tesla’s industry-leading vehicles, it could also see more upgrades in the future. On the balance sheet, “Tesla will need to maintain very good liquidity, including ample cash and considerable committed availability under its revolving credit facility.”
Downgrades are potentially in the forecast for Tesla as well, especially if demand for its cars begins to soften as more companies enter the sector. Additionally, if Tesla cannot sustain an EBITA margin above 5%, Moody’s said it could be concerned and downgrade the company’s rating. “A material shift in Tesla’s financial policy that signals a greater tolerance for financial risk could also cause a ratings downgrade, including if debt/EBITDA is greater than 3 times or if the amount of cash and committed revolver availability decreases considerably from current levels,” Moody’s said.
Tesla’s fourth-quarter earnings call is expected to be held on Wednesday, January 26, 2022, at 4:30 p.m. Central Time (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time).
Disclosure: Joey Klender is a TSLA Shareholder.
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Tesla short sellers won big following the company’s massive fall on Wall Street after it reported subpar Earnings on Wednesday.
Tesla short sellers collected about $4.12 billion in single-day profits on Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Shares fell as much as 15 percent during Thursday’s session. It closed as one of the worst days for Tesla on Wall Street in the past three years.
Investors sold off the stock after Tesla said it would aggressively direct its spending toward AI and its Optimus robot project. The company had record revenues, which were driven by one of the strongest quarters in terms of vehicle deliveries in company history.
However, it missed EPS estimates by reporting just $0.33, a far cry from the $0.53 analysts expected.
S3 Partners reported that about 3 percent of Tesla’s outstanding stock is sold short. Managing Director at S3, Ihor Dusaniwsky, provided the short seller’s potential profit, as well as another figure: shorts have likely had paper gains of $8.92 billion this year, as Tesla shares are down 30 percent in 2026.
Tesla (TSLA) Q2 2026 earnings results: miss on EPS, beat on revenue
Tesla has burned short sellers many times in the past, but the company’s latest Earnings Call was a chance for those skeptics to taste some payback. Although the company gave some very transparent information regarding future projects, the rollout of Robotaxi, Optimus, and Semi, many investors took their profits on Thursday.
Notable short sellers like Michael Burry have been transparent about their skepticism around Tesla shares. Burry just revealed three weeks ago that he had opened up a new short on the stock, stating he shorted Tesla shares at $416.22. “Happy it jumped back to this level,” he said in a blog post.
At the time of publication, Tesla shares were down about 3 percent and the stock was trading at $309.92.
Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) endured one of its sharpest single-day declines in years on July 23, tumbling approximately 14.5 percent and closing near $320 after opening the session around $374. The drop erased more than $140 billion in market value amid heavy trading volume and left the shares at multi-week lows.
The sell-off followed the company’s second-quarter 2026 results, released the previous evening. Tesla reported record revenue of $28.2 billion, up 26 percent year over year, driven by a Q2-record 480,126 vehicle deliveries. Energy storage deployments also rose strongly.
Tesla (TSLA) Q2 2026 earnings results: miss on EPS, beat on revenue
Yet profitability disappointed sharply. Operating income fell 57 percent to $398 million, compressing the operating margin to just 1.4 percent. Non-GAAP earnings per share came in at $0.33, well below the roughly $0.53 analysts had expected. Free cash flow turned negative by $1.1 billion as capital expenditures surged 142 percent to $5.8 billion, largely tied to accelerated spending on artificial intelligence, robotics, and autonomous systems.
The losses on capex were expected, as Tesla said it would be spending heavily in 2026.
Investors also reacted to lingering uncertainty surrounding key product timelines. During the Earnings Call, management reiterated ambitions for Robotaxi deployment and the Optimus humanoid robot, but offered limited new concrete milestones, renewing questions about execution pace that have long accompanied Tesla’s ambitious roadmap.
The magnitude of the decline places it among Tesla’s more severe one-day percentage losses since its 2010 initial public offering. Historically, the two largest single-day drops (split-adjusted) remain September 8, 2020, when shares fell 21.1 percent amid broader market volatility and valuation concerns, and January 13, 2012, with a 19.3 percent plunge during the company’s early growth struggles.
Other notable declines include an 18.6 percent drop on March 16, 2020, at the onset of pandemic-related market turmoil. Thursday’s move ranks roughly ninth on the all-time list but stands out as the steepest in more than a year.
Despite the short-term pain, Tesla’s long-term trajectory has repeatedly recovered from such volatility. The latest results underscore both the strength of its core automotive and energy businesses and the near-term costs of heavy investment in next-generation technologies.
In a striking revelation that underscores the lucrative crossover between Big Tech and space exploration, Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, disclosed a massive $94.1 billion equity stake in SpaceX following the rocket company’s blockbuster initial public offering earlier this year.
The disclosure came in Alphabet’s quarterly filing, marking the first time the long-held private investment has been publicly valued at market prices. Google was an early backer, investing alongside Fidelity in 2015 with roughly $500-900 million at a time when SpaceX was valued around $12 billion.
That bet has delivered extraordinary returns, roughly a hundredfold, transforming a strategic play on satellite internet and launch capabilities into one of Alphabet’s largest assets.
Google, $GOOGL, has said they hold $94 billion in SpaceX, $SPCX, shares after IPO.
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) July 23, 2026
Of the total holding, approximately $80 billion remains subject to short-term post-IPO lockup restrictions, preventing near-term sales. An additional $14.1 billion faces longer-term restrictions, extending into the third quarter of 2027. This structure limits immediate liquidity but protects against market volatility as SpaceX transitions into public trading.
The SpaceX position contributed significantly to gains in Alphabet’s broader investment portfolio, which also includes a major stake in AI leader Anthropic. Combined, these holdings helped drive nearly $100 billion in investment gains during the second quarter, providing a substantial boost to net income amid ongoing AI spending pressures.
Analysts view the disclosure as validation of Alphabet’s venture strategy beyond its core search and cloud businesses. The investment aligns with deeper ties, including reported multi-billion-dollar deals for AI computing capacity on SpaceX infrastructure. As SpaceX advances Starship flights, Starlink expansion, and ambitious Mars goals under Elon Musk, Google’s stake positions it to benefit from the commercialization of space.
For Alphabet, the windfall highlights how patient, forward-looking bets in transformative sectors can yield outsized rewards. While lockups temper short-term impact, the holding cements SpaceX as a cornerstone of Alphabet’s diversified portfolio in an era where aerospace, AI, and connectivity increasingly intersect. Investors will watch closely as restrictions lift and SpaceX’s public performance unfolds.
Tesla’s Supercharger Diner probably just secured more locations
Tesla short sellers win big after shares fall after earnings
