Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stock Price Down 1.5% - Here's Why

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 1.5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $279.47 and last traded at $281.48. 43,343,777 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 95,987,382 shares. The stock had previously closed at $285.88.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on TSLA shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Tesla in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Tesla from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Tesla from $370.00 to $320.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Cowen upgraded shares of Tesla from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $287.46.

Tesla Trading Up 2.4 %

The firm has a market cap of $925.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 140.79, a P/E/G ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 1.61. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $258.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $324.47.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.26). Tesla had a net margin of 7.26% and a return on equity of 10.31%. The company had revenue of $19.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In other Tesla news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,672 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.73, for a total transaction of $718,046.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 26,950 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,242,273.50. This trade represents a 9.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 112,390 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.58, for a total value of $32,096,336.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,274,300. The trade was a 56.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 486,618 shares of company stock valued at $155,887,459. Insiders own 20.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tesla

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of Tesla by 79.5% during the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 70 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Tesla by 75.6% during the 4th quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. GS Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 193.3% in the fourth quarter. GS Investments Inc. now owns 88 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Tesla during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Tesla in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other 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.