Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Down 6.6% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Tesla shares fell 6.6% in mid-day trading, briefly touching $388.59 before last trading near $391, well below the prior close of $418.45.
• J.P. Morgan turned more constructive on Tesla, dropping its bearish view and citing long-term upside from robotics and AI, while Tesla’s expanding unsupervised robotaxi rollout in Austin also supported the autonomy narrative.
• Wall Street remains mixed on valuation, with a consensus rating of Hold and a price target of about $404.37; the stock still carries a very high valuation, and some analysts argue much of the AI/robotics optimism is already priced in.

Shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) dropped 6.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $388.59 and last traded at $391.00. Approximately 61,794,232 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 2% from the average daily volume of 60,308,188 shares. The stock had previously closed at $418.45.

Tesla News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: J.P. Morgan abandoned its long-running bearish stance on Tesla and now sees greater upside from robotics and AI, a notable validation from one of the company’s biggest skeptics. Reuters: JP Morgan upgrades Tesla to 'neutral', sees robotics driving long-term growth
• Positive Sentiment: The upgraded thesis highlights Tesla as a leader in “physical AI,” which supports the idea that investors may be valuing the company more like an autonomy/robotics platform than a traditional automaker. TipRanks: J.P. Morgan Upgrades Tesla Stock (TSLA) to ‘Neutral,’ Says ‘TSLA Is at the Forefront of Physical AI’
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla also continues to expand its unsupervised robotaxi rollout in Austin, reinforcing the market’s focus on autonomy progress. Business Insider: Tesla expands service area of unsupervised robotaxis in Austin
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader commentary around Tesla’s valuation remains mixed, with some analysts arguing the stock already prices in a lot of AI and robotics optimism, limiting near-term upside if execution slows. 247WallSt: Buy, Hold, or Sell: Is Tesla Stock a Sell Above $400?
• Negative Sentiment: Crypto-related headlines also created a small headwind, with Bitcoin’s decline reportedly reducing the value of Tesla’s crypto treasury. Seeking Alpha: Bitcoin selloff wipes over $220M in value from Tesla's crypto treasury

Analyst Ratings Changes

TSLA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore raised Tesla to an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Tesla from $420.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. DZ Bank raised Tesla from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $385.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Tesla from $538.00 to $522.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $404.37.

Tesla Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.47 trillion, a PE ratio of 358.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 16.73 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 2.04. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $395.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $416.24.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.02. Tesla had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 4.89%. The firm had revenue of $22.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. Tesla's revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Tesla, Inc. will post 1.2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 26,409 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.11, for a total value of $9,985,506.99. Following the sale, the director directly owned 48,399 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,300,145.89. This represents a 35.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,147,700. This trade represents a 14.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 55,218 shares of company stock worth $20,609,455 over the last quarter. 19.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TSLA. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Tesla during the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,128,100,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Tesla by 3,205.5% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 21,459,599 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $9,650,811,000 after purchasing an additional 20,810,386 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 56.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 20,755,605 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock valued at $9,334,211,000 after buying an additional 7,450,766 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its position in shares of Tesla by 882.8% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 8,202,060 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $3,688,630,000 after buying an additional 7,367,507 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Tesla by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 258,925,024 shares of the electric vehicle producer's stock worth $116,443,762,000 after acquiring an additional 6,538,720 shares in the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Tesla

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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