Westpac Banking Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp has reduced its stake in Tesla by 24.7%, selling 11,452 shares and leaving it with 34,936 shares, which are now valued at approximately $9 million.
• Insider transactions revealed significant sales, with CFO Vaibhav Taneja selling 6,000 shares, and Director Ira Matthew Ehrenpreis selling 477,572 shares, indicating decreased positions among top executives.
• Tesla's recent quarterly earnings report showed an 11.8% year-over-year decline in revenue, with EPS of $0.40, missing expectations of $0.43 by $0.03.

Westpac Banking Corp reduced its stake in shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA - Free Report) by 24.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,936 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock after selling 11,452 shares during the quarter. Tesla comprises approximately 0.7% of Westpac Banking Corp's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Tesla were worth $9,054,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Tesla during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,600,000. Means Investment CO. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 37.7% in the first quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 23,089 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $5,984,000 after purchasing an additional 6,323 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 3.1% in the first quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 22,467 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $5,823,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 8.5% in the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 586,460 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $153,436,000 after purchasing an additional 46,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harvard Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Tesla in the fourth quarter valued at $8,158,000. 66.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Cfra Research lowered shares of Tesla from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Roth Mkm cut their target price on shares of Tesla from $450.00 to $395.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Tesla to an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Sunday, July 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $303.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In related news, Director Kimbal Musk sold 91,588 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $357.39, for a total value of $32,732,635.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,463,220 shares of the company's stock, valued at $522,940,195.80. This represents a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,777,200. This trade represents a 25.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 602,724 shares of company stock valued at $214,176,831 in the last ninety days. 20.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Tesla Stock Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:TSLA traded down $3.80 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $335.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 74,640,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 106,159,734. Tesla, Inc. has a 1 year low of $202.59 and a 1 year high of $488.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $318.69 and a 200-day moving average of $306.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.08 trillion, a PE ratio of 193.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.85 and a beta of 2.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.03). Tesla had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 6.54%. The business had revenue of $22.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.18 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

About Tesla

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.