Truist Financial Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stock Price

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) had its price target lowered by research analysts at Truist Financial from $438.00 to $400.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the electric vehicle producer’s stock. Truist Financial’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 10.93% from the company’s previous close.

TSLA has been the subject of several other reports. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on Tesla from $313.00 to $280.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $405.00 price target on shares of Tesla in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Tesla in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $415.00 price objective on shares of Tesla and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, CICC Research raised their target price on shares of Tesla from $450.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and ten have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $402.61.

Tesla Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TSLA opened at $360.59 on Thursday. Tesla has a 52-week low of $214.25 and a 52-week high of $498.83. The company has a market capitalization of $1.35 trillion, a P/E ratio of 333.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $401.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $427.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 2.16.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $24.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.75 billion. Tesla had a return on equity of 4.86% and a net margin of 4.00%.The business’s revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Tesla will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In other Tesla news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,264 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.03, for a total transaction of $898,875.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,106 shares in the company, valued at $7,188,625.18. This trade represents a 11.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 25,809 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.33, for a total transaction of $9,273,947.97. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 33,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,166,913.80. The trade was a 43.25% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 53,804 shares of company stock worth $20,865,598 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 19.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC grew its position in Tesla by 0.4% during the third quarter. Relyea Zuckerberg Hanson LLC now owns 6,558 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $2,916,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Equita Financial Network Inc. raised its holdings in Tesla by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Equita Financial Network Inc. now owns 855 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $380,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. VanderPol Investments L.L.C. raised its holdings in Tesla by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. VanderPol Investments L.L.C. now owns 1,070 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $464,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Tesla by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,577 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $3,814,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC now owns 2,076 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $923,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.20% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Tesla

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: China demand pickup — China‑made EV shipments rose ~8.7% in March, signaling improving momentum in Tesla’s largest market. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Japan expansion — Tesla plans to double down in Japan (targeting ~60 stores) to chase top imported‑car position, a growth avenue outside core markets. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: SpaceX IPO narrative — A potential SpaceX IPO is resurfacing merger/partnership chatter that could influence investor sentiment, but it’s a longer‑dated, narrative‑driven factor rather than an immediate catalyst for Tesla’s fundamentals. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Software/AI progress — FSD v14.3 is in employee beta and Tesla continues to pitch AI/robotics (Optimus/Cybercab) as future growth levers; meaningful monetization remains uncertain and farther out. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Delivery miss & inventory build — Q1 deliveries (358,023) missed consensus; production outpaced deliveries by ~50k units, prompting concerns about softer demand, potential markdowns and near‑term margin pressure. This is the primary reason the shares moved lower. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Energy storage slowdown — Energy storage deployments (reported 8.8 GWh) fell short of expectations and declined sequentially, testing Tesla’s diversification narrative and cash‑generation hopes. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst cuts & sentiment hit — Multiple firms (Goldman, Truist, Baird and others) trimmed price targets and tone after the delivery report, increasing near‑term downside risk as estimates are reworked. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Capex & execution concerns — Barclays flagged rising capex needs as Tesla pivots toward AI, robotics and autonomy, which could mean higher capital intensity and pressure on free cash flow. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Leases & earnings risk — A returning wave of lease returns and used‑vehicle supply could weigh on used prices and upcoming earnings, per industry commentary. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling & workforce shrink — A Tesla director disclosed a ~$9.27M share sale and reports show the Texas factory workforce shrank ~22% in 2025, both raising questions about demand/execution near term. Read More.

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.