Electric vehicle (EV) maker Tesla had an eventful day on Monday, with a series of announcements that disappointed investors. The company reported third-quarter deliveries of approximately 430,000 vehicles, missing Wall Street’s expectations by 25,000 units. In contrast, its competitor Rivian Automotive exceeded expectations, selling 15,564 units. Tesla also faced competition from China’s largest EV maker, BYD, which produced more battery-electric vehicles in the third quarter. Despite these challenges, Tesla stock finished up 0.5% as analysts remained optimistic about the company’s demand and future products.
Although Tesla’s delivery numbers fell short, analysts like George Gianarikas of Canaccord and Dan Ives of Wedbush believe that demand for Tesla vehicles remains solid. They are optimistic about the upcoming release of the Cybertruck and the updated Model 3, which they expect to drive sales. Shutdowns during the third quarter impacted Tesla’s production, leading to the delivery miss. However, analysts believe that Tesla’s maintained full-year guidance of 1.8 million units sold demonstrates stabilizing demand. Analysts Pierre Ferragu of New Street Research and Ben Kallo of Baird shared this positive sentiment and maintained their Buy ratings on Tesla stock.
Not all analysts were as optimistic as their peers. Tom Narayan of RBC pointed out that short delivery times indicate that Tesla’s deliveries match underlying demand. He questioned why deliveries for the higher-priced Model S and Model X vehicles were weak, despite price cuts. However, the majority of analysts maintain a positive outlook on Tesla, dismissing the weaker third-quarter results as a temporary setback. Tesla’s stock has performed well this year, with a 104% increase, though it has declined by 10% over the past three months. As of Tuesday, Tesla stock was down 1.1% in premarket trading.