Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stock Price Down 4.4% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Tesla's stock price dropped by 4.4%, falling to approximately $433.09 during trading, with a notable decrease in trading volume compared to the average.
• A range of analyst ratings have been issued for Tesla, including two "Strong Buy," nineteen "Buy," thirteen "Hold," and eight "Sell" ratings, with a consensus price target of $344.40.
• Insider transactions showed Director James R. Murdoch and CFO Vaibhav Taneja selling significant amounts of company stock, resulting in notable decreases in their positions.

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 4.4% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $432.45 and last traded at $433.09. Approximately 100,053,091 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 3% from the average daily volume of 103,087,516 shares. The stock had previously closed at $453.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on TSLA shares. Glj Research reissued a "sell" rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Tesla from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Tesla from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the company from $320.00 to $548.00 in a report on Friday, September 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $355.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Tesla from $115.00 to $150.00 in a report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and eight have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $344.40.

Tesla Price Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average is $366.57 and its 200-day moving average is $324.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The company has a market capitalization of $1.44 trillion, a P/E ratio of 250.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 14.93 and a beta of 2.08.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In other news, Director James R. Murdoch sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.68, for a total transaction of $25,360,800.00. Following the sale, the director owned 637,031 shares of the company's stock, valued at $269,260,263.08. This trade represents a 8.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,606 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.38, for a total transaction of $918,302.28. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,856 shares in the company, valued at $3,473,057.28. The trade was a 20.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 202,606 shares of company stock valued at $75,588,902. 19.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Means Investment CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Tesla by 37.7% during the 1st quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 23,089 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $5,984,000 after purchasing an additional 6,323 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position in shares of Tesla by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 22,467 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $5,823,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. Siren L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Tesla during the 1st quarter worth about $2,332,000. Zuckerman Investment Group LLC increased its position in shares of Tesla by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Zuckerman Investment Group LLC now owns 12,748 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $3,304,000 after purchasing an additional 826 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Tesla during the 1st quarter worth about $594,000. 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.

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