Tesla Broke 2 Important Quarterly Records in Q1

The first three months of the year were eventful for Tesla, to say the least, with sweeping price drops and the announcement of a new Gigafactory in Mexico. Through all of it, Tesla has continued to increase its sales and production, clinching two significant quarterly records in Q1.

Above: A Tesla Model Y at a Supercharger station (Image: Casey Murphy / EVANNEX).

Tesla shared its Q1 delivery results in recent weeks, showing that the automaker broke records in both production and deliveries, as detailed by Barron’s. In the first quarter of the year, Tesla produced 440,808 vehicles and delivered 422,875 throughout markets around the world. Both figures outpace previous quarterly records set in Q4 for Tesla, when the automaker produced 439,701 vehicles and delivered 405,278.

Wall Street analysts generally estimated Tesla would have around 420,000 vehicle deliveries in the first quarter, so the automaker narrowly outperformed consensus forecasts. Additionally, Tesla’s shares were trading up over 68 percent at the end of the quarter, representing the company’s top performance in Q1 throughout its short history, with 2012’s first quarter seeing a 30.4 percent on share trading prices.

In terms of quarterly share-trading records, Q1 2023 is the sixth best of any quarter throughout the year, out of the company’s 51 quarters total. As Barron’s notes, strong stocks keep the stakes high for a company’s financial results. This results in investors keeping a close eye on delivery and production levels, and other financial details, in order to keep up with trading expectations.

Tesla bull and Deutsche Bank Analyst Emmanuel Rosner rates the automaker’s shares a “Buy,” with a $250 price target on the stock. He forecasted roughly 416,000 units. The delivery target was “reflecting still the uncertain macro environment after the price cuts, as well as competitive pricing responses in China,” Rosner said.

GLJ Research Analyst Gordon Johnson, who is bearish on Tesla, forecasted roughly 425,000 deliveries, rating the company’s shares a “Sell” and offering a price target of $24.33 on the stock.

Analysts also looked at the difference between production and deliveries as a rough indicator of demand, with Q1’s results bearing positive news for the company. Tesla built 17,933 units in Q1, with sales growing faster than production. If the difference between production and deliveries increases, then investors will view the spread as a demand issue, even potentially leading to a deceleration in production.

At the time of writing, Tesla’s shares are trading at $185.29 (-$7.29), down 3.79 percent from the day’s open. With average analyst price targets sitting around $204, placing Tesla’s stock value with management stock options at about $700 billion.

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