Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Lifted to Buy at Bank of America

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Bank of America from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $220.00 target price on the electric vehicle producer's stock. Bank of America's target price suggests a potential upside of 35.69% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. China Renaissance started coverage on shares of Tesla in a research report on Monday, February 26th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Tesla from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Tesla in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $298.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Tesla from $320.00 to $310.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $186.22.

Tesla Price Performance

Shares of TSLA stock traded up $17.45 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $162.13. The stock had a trading volume of 180,807,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 103,011,320. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $176.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $208.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Tesla has a 12 month low of $138.80 and a 12 month high of $299.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $516.35 billion, a PE ratio of 37.62, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 2.39.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.03). Tesla had a net margin of 15.50% and a return on equity of 16.62%. The firm had revenue of $25.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. Tesla's revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Tesla will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 93,705 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.44, for a total value of $16,439,605.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,631,600. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 93,705 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.44, for a total value of $16,439,605.20. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,631,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 93,706 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.73, for a total transaction of $18,247,369.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,950. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 209,098 shares of company stock valued at $38,802,534 over the last three months. 20.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,353 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $1,089,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Holderness Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Holderness Investments Co. now owns 2,599 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $650,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC now owns 16,881 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $4,224,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 10,554 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $2,622,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ML & R Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. ML & R Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,819 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $455,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.20% of the company's stock.

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.