Robert W. Baird Lowers Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Price Target to $522.00

Key Points

• Robert W. Baird cut its Tesla price target to $522 from $538 but kept an outperform rating, with the new target implying roughly a 40% upside from the prior close.
• Analysts are divided—18 Buy, 15 Hold and 8 Sell—producing a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $398.45, well below Baird’s outlook.
• Tesla slightly beat Q1 EPS and posted positive free cash flow but missed revenue expectations, while a planned >$25 billion spend on AI/chips/robotics and slower robotaxi timelines raise near‑term cash‑flow and execution concerns.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) had its target price cut by equities research analysts at Robert W. Baird from $538.00 to $522.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has an "outperform" rating on the electric vehicle producer's stock. Robert W. Baird's price target would suggest a potential upside of 40.07% from the company's previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on TSLA. DZ Bank raised Tesla from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $385.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus set a $508.00 price objective on shares of Tesla in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $490.00 price objective on shares of Tesla in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Tesla in a research report on Wednesday. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and eight have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $398.45.

Tesla Stock Performance

Shares of TSLA stock opened at $372.66 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $386.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $421.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Tesla has a 52-week low of $249.20 and a 52-week high of $498.83. The stock has a market cap of $1.40 trillion, a PE ratio of 341.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 1.91.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.02. Tesla had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 4.96%. The firm had revenue of $22.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Tesla will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 25,809 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.33, for a total transaction of $9,273,947.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 33,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,166,913.80. The trade was a 43.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,264 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.03, for a total transaction of $898,875.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,188,625.18. This trade represents a 11.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 53,804 shares of company stock worth $20,865,598. Insiders own 19.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TSLA. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Tesla by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 87,929 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $35,509,000 after purchasing an additional 9,293 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tesla by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,317 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $2,147,000 after buying an additional 931 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC grew its stake in Tesla by 52.2% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 10,368 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $4,187,000 after acquiring an additional 3,558 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Tesla by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,135 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $3,855,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AGP Franklin LLC raised its holdings in Tesla by 21.2% in the 2nd quarter. AGP Franklin LLC now owns 4,861 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $1,544,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Tesla

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on EPS and surprise positive free cash flow gives near-term support to TSLA; investors point to profitability resilience despite softer vehicle demand. Tesla reports surprise positive free cash flow
• Positive Sentiment: Elon Musk says Tesla has begun pilot production of Cybercab robotaxis and shared video of an occupant-less vehicle — a tangible milestone for the autonomy/robotaxi narrative that supports longer-term upside. Elon Musk says Tesla has started producing cybecabs
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla’s share in California new‑car registrations jumped to ~56% in Q1 — a sign the company still holds market strength in its largest U.S. EV market. Tesla's California market share soars to 56% in Q1 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Intel/Tesla Terafab disclosure (plans to use Intel’s 14A process) reduces some chip‑supply uncertainty for Tesla’s in‑house AI chip ambitions and helped chip partners rally. Elon Musk lays out Terafab AI chip project plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Next‑gen A15 AI chip tape‑out clears a technical milestone for Tesla’s compute roadmap, but manufacturing and scale remain the bigger near‑term questions. This Is What Tesla Inc. (TSLA) A15 Chip Tape-out Means
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are split: some firms (TD Cowen, Cantor, Canaccord) reiterated/upgraded ratings and raised targets, while others stuck to neutral or trimmed targets — providing both support and friction in the stock. Benzinga coverage of analyst moves
• Negative Sentiment: Tesla warned it will spend more than $25 billion this year on AI, chips and robotics — investors fear a sharp capex ramp will push cash flow negative for 2026 and compress near‑term returns. That announcement has been the primary sell catalyst since the earnings call. Tesla's $25 billion spending plan tests investor faith
• Negative Sentiment: Musk acknowledged older HW3 vehicles won’t achieve unsupervised FSD without upgrades — a costly retrofit promise for owners and a reputational/headline risk for Tesla. Elon Musk admits millions of Tesla owners need upgrades for true ‘Full Self-Driving'
• Negative Sentiment: Timelines for robotaxi / Optimus commercialization were softened or removed in the Q1 filing and call; analysts warned rollout is slower than hoped — increasing execution risk versus the premium valuation. Musk sounds cautious tone on robotaxis amid slower-than-expected rollout
• Negative Sentiment: A brief, vague SEC‑filed ~ $2B AI/hardware acquisition disclosure (no company named) added uncertainty about what Tesla bought and its near‑term impact on financials. Tesla slips one-sentence disclosure of a mysterious $2 billion AI hardware acquisition

Tesla Company Profile

Tesla, Inc NASDAQ: TSLA is an American company that designs, manufactures and sells electric vehicles, energy generation and energy storage products. Founded in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning, Tesla grew into a vertically integrated mobility and clean‑energy company with Elon Musk serving as its chief executive officer. The company's stated mission is to accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy, reflected in its combined focus on electric drivetrains, battery technology, renewable energy products and software.

Tesla's automotive business includes a lineup of battery‑electric vehicles and related services.

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