Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Down 1.7% – Here’s What Happened

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares were down 1.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $345.20 and last traded at $348.75. Approximately 32,019,665 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 40% from the average session volume of 53,509,168 shares. The stock had previously closed at $354.81.

Key Tesla News

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Robotaxi and Cybercab rollout: Tesla is expanding robotaxi service hours and its unsupervised fleet beyond Austin and Miami, while preparing employee rides ahead of an August Cybercab rollout. Investors view these steps as evidence that autonomy could begin generating meaningful revenue. Tesla robotaxi expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Autonomous driving monetization: Analysts argue that Tesla’s robotaxi business is beginning to monetize but is not fully reflected in the share price. State permits for robotaxi operations and Waymo’s more cautious stance on reaching Level 4 autonomy could strengthen Tesla’s competitive narrative. Tesla autonomous monetization analysis
• Positive Sentiment: New businesses are advancing: Optimus humanoid robot production has reportedly begun at Fremont, and Tesla is installing production lines. The company also scheduled a September 24 Semi event, while Einride expects to receive approximately 75 of its 500 Tesla Semi trucks this year, with the remainder due in 2027. Tesla Semi delivery timeline
• Neutral Sentiment: Market and technical factors: Strong Nvidia results may support sentiment toward Tesla’s AI-compute and Full Self-Driving ambitions. However, analysts note TSLA has lagged the S&P 500 and remains near key technical resistance, limiting the immediate signal. Tesla performance versus the S&P 500
• Negative Sentiment: Large China recall: Tesla is voluntarily recalling about 3 million vehicles in China over door handles that may fail after severe crashes and inadequate driver-attention monitoring. The recall creates potential cost, regulatory and brand risks. Tesla China recall
• Negative Sentiment: FSD safety criticism: A report that the latest FSD software nearly drove into a train raises fresh questions about system reliability and could complicate Tesla’s autonomy rollout. Tesla FSD train incident
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and execution concerns: Despite being well below its 52-week high, Tesla still trades at roughly 330 times earnings. The quiet discontinuation of Solar Roof products and ongoing concerns about compressed automotive margins suggest investors are paying heavily for future robotaxi, AI and robotics growth. Tesla valuation analysis

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Glj Research reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Mizuho set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Tesla and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Tesla from $417.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Tesla currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $401.74.

Tesla Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $361.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $385.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 1.94 and a quick ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $1.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 322.92, a P/E/G ratio of 17.46 and a beta of 1.83.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $28.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.42 billion. Tesla had a net margin of 3.67% and a return on equity of 3.82%. Tesla’s quarterly revenue was up 25.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Tesla, Inc. will post 0.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Tesla

In other news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,606 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $402.20, for a total transaction of $1,048,133.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 22,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,864,085.80. This trade represents a 10.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 19.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Tesla by 34.7% in the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 19,567 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $8,799,000 after purchasing an additional 5,039 shares during the period. Wealthquest Corp acquired a new position in shares of Tesla during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,035,000. Private Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Tesla by 139.3% in the 4th quarter. Private Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 21,331 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $9,593,000 after acquiring an additional 12,417 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its position in Tesla by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 64,481 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $28,998,000 after purchasing an additional 16,652 shares during the period. Finally, Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its holdings in shares of Tesla by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 404,023 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $181,697,000 after purchasing an additional 11,900 shares during the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is 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.