Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Down 3.6% on Analyst Downgrade

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) was down 3.6% on Thursday after Mizuho lowered their price target on the stock from $540.00 to $480.00. Mizuho currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Tesla traded as low as $368.39 and last traded at $373.72. Approximately 93,206,488 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 46% from the average daily volume of 63,631,027 shares. The stock had previously closed at $387.51.

TSLA has been the subject of several other reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Tesla from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $415.00 price objective on shares of Tesla and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Tigress Financial started coverage on shares of Tesla in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $550.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Tesla in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Tesla from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and nine have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $399.41.

Insider Transactions at Tesla

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

Tesla News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and near-term cash strength: Tesla reported an EPS beat and a surprise positive free cash flow in Q1, showing operating resiliency even as vehicle demand softens. Tesla reports surprise positive free cash flow
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic chip partnership for Terafab: Elon Musk said Tesla will use Intel’s 14A process for chips at its planned Terafab, giving Intel a major customer and supporting Tesla’s semiconductor plans. That could de‑risk part of Tesla’s AI hardware roadmap. Elon Musk lays out Terafab AI chip project plan
• Positive Sentiment: Operational tails: Tesla is expanding production capacity (including a new hiring push in Germany) and growing software/services (FSD subscriptions). Those operational positives help justify long-term AI/robotics ambitions. Tesla to create 1,000 new jobs in Germany
• Neutral Sentiment: Cybercab pilot production started, but ramp will be slow: Pilot production of the Cybercab is underway — a positive milestone — yet analysts caution meaningful sales and margin contribution will take time. Tesla’s Cybercab Pilot Production Is Underway
• Neutral Sentiment: Mystery $2B AI acquisition disclosed — details limited: A one-sentence 10‑Q disclosure shows a roughly $2B AI hardware deal; lack of transparency creates uncertainty about what was bought and how it fits the plan. Tesla slips one-sentence disclosure of a mysterious $2 billion AI hardware acquisition
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst moves: Some firms raised targets on the AI narrative while others trimmed expectations; reactions are fragmented, reflecting debate over valuation vs. execution risk. Canaccord raises price target
• Negative Sentiment: Massive capex push alarms investors: Management guided to a >$25B capex plan for 2026 to fund AI, chips, Optimus and robotaxi scale — investors fear negative free cash flow the rest of the year and a heavier execution burden. Tesla’s $25 billion spending plan tests investor faith
• Negative Sentiment: Robotaxi/Optimus timelines softened and hardware gaps admitted: Tesla removed prior city launch timelines and Musk sounded more cautious on robotaxi rollouts; he also acknowledged many vehicles need hardware upgrades to reach unsupervised FSD — implying extra costs and slower monetization. Musk sounds cautious on robotaxis Millions of Tesla owners need upgrades for true FSD
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue/delivery headwinds and regional/regulatory delays: Q1 revenue missed some estimates and deliveries fell short of the most optimistic views; China FSD approval was pushed into Q3, adding near-term uncertainty. Tesla revenue misses estimates Tesla delays China FSD approval
• Negative Sentiment: Broader market/geopolitical pressure: Rising geopolitical risk (Strait of Hormuz) and a risk-off tone in tech amplified selling pressure on high‑beta, high‑expectation names like TSLA. Markets dip as Strait of Hormuz conflict intensifies

Institutional Trading of Tesla

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TSLA. Networth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Tesla during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Chapman Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Tesla during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Davidson Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Tesla by 79.4% during the fourth quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. now owns 61 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial grew its holdings in Tesla by 66.7% during the first quarter. Friedenthal Financial now owns 75 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Tesla during the third quarter worth about $29,000. 66.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Tesla Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.40 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 342.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 1.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $386.76 and a 200 day moving average of $421.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 1.77.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $22.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. Tesla had a return on equity of 4.96% and a net margin of 3.95%.Tesla’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Tesla, Inc. will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.