Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) undoubtedly has had a terrible quarter. However, the clouds might have parted for Elon Musk’s car company as new information suggests that Tesla might be able to stage a comeback after all. The auto manufacturer ended up gaining significantly on news that its second-quarter sales were quite solid.
Shares of Tesla surged when a report from Electrek said that Tesla executives told its sales and delivery managers in North America that they had already delivered 33,000 cars in the region for the quarter.
In comparison, this is already half of the 63,000 cars delivered in the first quarter, which was a big disappointment for analysts. The fact that Tesla has supposedly already delivered so many cars this early into the quarter is a very good sign for the car company.
While Tesla executives also supposedly said that they’re planning to match the 33,000 figure in the month of June alone – offering significant bonuses to sales and delivery people if achieved – outsiders are rightfully hesitant on putting too much faith into these predictions.
It’s worth mentioning that the idea of giving out bonuses to regular employees is a big departure from the previous cost-cutting attitude Elon Musk had. Sales employees supposedly will receive $1,200 while delivery personnel would get $550 if the company achieves their goal and double that if they get 36,000 deliveries instead.
“While our demand is strong, we have a lot of vehicle deliveries to catch up to in order to have a successful quarter,” Musk wrote in a company-wide email sent last week. “Per my earlier email, if we execute well, Q2 will be an all-time record for Tesla vehicle deliveries and an awesome victory!!.” While most industry experts take Musk’s comments with a heavy grain of salt, further proof that the car company is indeed having an excellent second quarter has lifted the spirits of Tesla enthusiasts.
However, the company still faces significant risk in the form of the ongoing Chinese-U.S. trade tensions. Some worry that Chinese buyers will opt out of purchasing Tesla’s as tariffs hike up the price of the automobile.
Shares of Tesla gained 4.8 percent on Thursday, inching up an extra 0.2 percent in extended trading in response to the news in what was the fifth best trading day for the company this year.
This pushed the car company back into the $200s, as for the past couple of weeks Tesla has been trading below that figure. Having reached lows not seen since late 2016, many had prophesized the end of the auto manufacturer.
Tesla Company Profile
Founded in 2003 and based in Palo Alto, California, Tesla is a vertically integrated sustainable energy company that also aims to transition the world to electric mobility by making electric vehicles.
It sells solar panels and solar roofs for energy generation plus batteries for stationary storage for residential and commercial properties including utilities. The Tesla Roadster debuted in 2008, Model S in 2012, Model X in 2015, and Model 3 in 2017. Global deliveries in 2018 were 245,506 units. Tesla went public in 2010 and employs about 50,000 people. – Warrior Trading News
