Tesla’s sales and profits plummeted in the first quarter, but shareholders apparently expected worse. A cheaper model is said to be coming sooner than planned. The shares shot up after the figures were released.
Austin. Hardly any other company boss is as polarizing as Tesla CEO Elon Musk. While critics accuse him of being a world champion in announcing (fully autonomous driving, robotaxis) without delivering, and point to the current problems (weak demand and margins for electric cars), Tesla shareholders see the group as more than just a car manufacturer : In your eyes, Tesla is an artificial intelligence and robotics company. Musk said on Tuesday evening when presenting the quarterly figures: “If someone doesn’t believe that Tesla will solve the problem of autonomous driving, I think they shouldn’t invest in the company.” And he added: “But we will. And that’s what we’re doing.” Such convictions were well received by investors.
But the current business figures have also been correct in recent years. Recently it wasn’t like that anymore. Competition from China, a discount battle and slowing growth in electric cars squeezed Tesla’s margins and made its visions of the future seem all the more vague. Tesla recently announced that it would cut a tenth of its 140,000 jobs worldwide.
Sharp decline in profits
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