Tesla revenues fall short of expectations despite record cars built
Electric car company Tesla posted second-quarter revenue below analysts’ expectations, pushing its shares down 10 per cent to $239.24 in after-hours trading.
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Total revenues climbed to $6.35bn (£5.09bn) from $4bn a year earlier, but this was below the $6.41bn expected by analysts.
Yet the US firm, led by controversial entrepreneur Elon Musk, achieved record production and deliveries of vehicles in the second quarter.
It built 72,531 of its Model 3 all-electric luxury sedans, over three times the 28,578 it made in the same period a year earlier.
“This is an important milestone as it represents rapid progress in managing global logistics and delivery operations at higher volumes,” Tesla said.
Profit still eludes the futuristic firm, however. Its net loss per share was $1.12, down 63 per cent but well below the $0.4 loss analysts had expected.
Tesla said it continued to aim for positive net income in the third quarter after losing $167m this quarter, down 73 per cent year on year.
It said it remains on track to start building Model 3 cars in China by the end of the year and to deliver 360,000 to 400,000 vehicles this year.
Nonetheless, the after-hours share price fall indicating investors were not impressed by lower-than-expected revenues.
“Tesla needs to refocus its efforts from maintaining the appearance of a profitable and sustainable business model to actually delivering one,” said Alyssa Altman, transportation lead at digital consultancy Publicis Sapient.
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“As we have seen repeatedly, Tesla struggles to fulfil its ambitious goals and promises on a long-term basis.”