This article highlights a significant Tesla earnings report, characterized by substantial anticipation, albeit not entirely for positive reasons.
Throughout the year, Tesla has faced numerous challenges as its CEO, Elon Musk, increasingly engages with right-wing politics and supervises the advisory body DOGE, empowered by President Trump to implement substantial federal spending cuts.
These factors have contributed to a decline in both Tesla’s stock price and global sales, compounded by competitive pressures from companies in China, Europe, and North America.
Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas notes that Tesla is facing the lowest margin expectations this quarter in over a decade. The company’s stock performance will hinge on its ability to elucidate the causes behind its lower profit margins compared to Volkswagen’s, bolster confidence in its autonomy initiatives, and shift Musk’s focus away from political activities.
Analysts surveyed by Yahoo Finance predict Tesla’s revenue will be approximately $21.41 billion, a figure that remains flat year-over-year and represents a decrease from $25.7 billion in Q4 2024.
The Tesla Q1 2025 earnings call is scheduled for 2:30 pm PT / 5:30 pm ET, accessible via various platforms.
Updated EV Sales Guidance
Previously, during Tesla’s earnings call, the company projected a return to growth for its vehicle business in 2025. Given Tesla’s lackluster delivery figures for Q1 and weakened customer demand, influenced partly by Musk’s political stances, it remains to be seen if this guidance holds firm.
In the first three months of the year, Tesla reported 336,681 deliveries, marking its weakest quarterly performance in over two years. Despite challenges, Tesla is positioned advantageously to weather the impact of President Trump’s tariffs due to its domestic sourcing and high levels of vertical integration. However, Musk’s association with Trump could potentially impact Tesla’s popularity in significant markets like China, potentially shifting customers toward competitors like BYD.
Any Mention of the Affordable EV
Reports from within Tesla suggest the company has nearly abandoned plans for a low-cost EV, though some sources indicate a mere postponement in its release. Updates on this matter are anticipated.
Robotaxi Rollout
During the 2024 earnings call, Musk announced plans for a paid ride-hailing robotaxi service in Austin, using Model Y and Model 3 vehicles with "unsupervised" Full Self-Driving technology. However, concrete details regarding commercialization and specific routes or territories remain undisclosed, prompting investors and analysts to seek further information.
There are also plans to extend service to California, though details remain scarce.
Cybercab Production
Updates on Tesla’s Cybercab are expected, given that current federal regulations do not yet permit mass production and deployment of autonomous vehicles without human controls unless an exemption is granted. Insights into potential production timelines for these futuristic vehicles could be revealed.
Optimus Updates
Tesla plans to utilize its Optimus humanoid robots internally later this year for "boring" tasks, with expected timelines for high-volume production and initial deliveries anticipated during this period.
Dojo or Cortex
Since August 2024, Tesla and Musk have remained quiet about the Dojo supercomputer, previously seen as instrumental in Tesla’s self-driving pursuits. Meanwhile, Tesla’s other AI project, Cortex, is under development at the Tesla headquarters in Austin. While recent shareholder communications included updates on Cortex, Dojo has been absent from discussions. The latest insights come from the Tesla AI X account, which showed a computing cluster but did not specify whether it was related to Dojo or Cortex.
The Re-prioritization of Elon
According to Jonas, investors seek any indication that Tesla’s CEO will refocus efforts on company priorities rather than political endeavors. Dan Ives, a Wedbush analyst, emphasized that Musk faces a "Code Red Situation" and should distance himself from DOGE to prevent Tesla’s brand from becoming embroiled in political discourse.
