Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Down 4.7% - Should You Sell?

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) shares traded down 4.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $270.78 and last traded at $278.40. 47,612,028 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 95,471,344 shares. The stock had previously closed at $292.03.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on TSLA. Oppenheimer reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of Tesla in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. BNP Paribas set a $137.00 target price on shares of Tesla and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Tesla from $420.00 to $345.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley reissued a "buy" rating and set a $430.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Tesla from $314.00 to $307.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $287.46.

Tesla Stock Performance

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $259.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $324.00. The company has a market capitalization of $915.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 138.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last released its 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). The company had revenue of $19.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.93 billion. Tesla had a net margin of 7.26% and a return on equity of 10.31%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 112,390 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.58, for a total value of $32,096,336.20. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 85,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,274,300. This trade represents a 56.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kimbal Musk sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $367.87, for a total value of $27,590,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,463,220 shares in the company, valued at $538,274,741.40. This trade represents a 4.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 486,618 shares of company stock worth $155,887,459. Company insiders own 20.70% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hengehold Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Tesla by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $544,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 6,990 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $2,823,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC increased its position in Tesla by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 2,814 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Tesla by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,305 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $2,950,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Finance LLC increased its holdings in shares of Tesla by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 3,510 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.20% of the company's stock.

Tesla Company Profile

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.