Tesla is set to announce second-quarter results after the bell on Wednesday, three weeks after reporting a 25% year-over-year increase in vehicle deliveries. The earnings report comes as Tesla stock has declined 10% this month and 16% for the year. Wall Street analysts polled by LSEG expect earnings per share of 51 cents and revenue of $25.71 billion for the quarter. The announcement follows Tesla's early July report showing vehicle deliveries topped 480,000, exceeding analyst expectations despite ongoing competition from Chinese automakers including BYD, Nio and Xiaomi.
Wall Street Sets Q2 Expectations at 51 Cents EPS
Analysts polled by LSEG expect Tesla to report earnings per share of 51 cents and revenue of $25.71 billion for the second quarter.
Tesla Stock Declines 16% Year-to-Date
Tesla's stock price has fallen approximately 10% this month and 16% for the year. The decline has coincided with a drop in SpaceX, Elon Musk's other trillion-dollar company, which held a record market debut in June and has lost almost 40% of its value since its peak close.
Q2 Deliveries Exceeded 480,000 Units
In early July, Tesla reported vehicle deliveries that topped 480,000, exceeding analysts' expectations. The company is attempting to recover from consecutive years of declining deliveries, largely due to competition from Chinese automakers including BYD, Nio and Xiaomi that are offering affordable but high-tech EVs in markets beyond the U.S.
Soaring gas prices resulting from the U.S. war in Iran boosted Tesla sales in the first half of the year, with European car buyers purchasing more EVs.
Tesla Launched Lower-Cost Model 3 and Model Y Variants
In the second quarter, Tesla started selling lower-cost versions of its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles. The company also made its premium driver assistance system, marketed as Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in the U.S., available in some European markets.
Musk has shifted the focus of the company away from vehicle sales and toward its driverless Robotaxi service, ramping production of the company's driverless Cybercab, and remaking older factory lines in Fremont, California, to start manufacturing Optimus humanoid robots.
"I think Optimus will be our biggest product, not just Tesla's biggest product ever, but probably the biggest product ever," Musk said on the company's last earnings call in April.
Musk Predicted 1 Million Robotaxis by 2020 in 2019
Musk told investors in 2019 that there would be 1 million Tesla robotaxis on the road by 2020. Last year, he said the company's autonomous ride-hailing services would cover "probably half the population of the U.S." by the end of this year. At the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this year, Musk said Tesla Robotaxis would be "very, very widespread" domestically by the end of this year.
Paul Miller, an analyst at Forrester, told CNBC in an email that Tesla leadership has made "plenty of big claims about autonomous mobility and physical AI over the years."
Tesla Faces Competition from Waymo and Apollo Go
In robotaxis, Tesla is behind Alphabet's Waymo in the U.S. and Baidu's Apollo Go in China. In the humanoid robot market, where Tesla is still developing its product, the company faces competition from companies including China's Unitree, Boston Dynamics, Agility Robotics, Apptronik and London-based startup Humanoid.
Investors Await Updates on Terafab Chip Factory
On Wednesday's conference call, investors will be looking for updates on robotics and driverless technology, and how Musk expects Tesla and SpaceX to work together, including on Terafab, a massive chip factory the companies plan to jointly build and run with Intel in Texas.
FAQ
What are Wall Street's expectations for Tesla's Q2 earnings?
Analysts polled by LSEG expect Tesla to report earnings per share of 51 cents and revenue of $25.71 billion for the second quarter.
How many vehicles did Tesla deliver in Q2?
In early July, Tesla reported vehicle deliveries that topped 480,000 for the second quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and representing a 25% year-over-year increase.
What new products did Tesla launch in the second quarter?
Tesla started selling lower-cost versions of its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles in the second quarter and made its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) system available in some European markets.
