Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Shares Down 2.2% – Here’s Why

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) fell 2.2% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $346.64 and last traded at $352.82. 76,947,926 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 24% from the average session volume of 62,182,230 shares. The stock had previously closed at $360.59.

Tesla News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Tesla this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NHTSA closed its probe into Tesla’s “Actually Smart Summon” feature, removing a regulatory overhang that briefly pressured shares. Reuters: NHTSA ends probe
• Positive Sentiment: Tesla reported a huge month in South Korea (sales +330% YoY in March), showing pockets of demand strength that can support regional growth stories. Reuters: South Korea sales surge
• Positive Sentiment: Some firms (e.g., Canaccord) reaffirm bullish ratings and higher price targets, giving investors a counterpoint to the wave of cuts. Benzinga: Canaccord reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Longer‑term bull cases (robotaxi/AI, energy storage) remain part of the narrative, but monetization is years away and so is stock support from those developments. Zacks: AI/AV debate
• Neutral Sentiment: Debate continues over whether the delivery miss is cyclical or signals structural degrowth — analysts and models diverge on whether now is a buying opportunity. Barchart: degrowth analysis
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan reiterated a very bearish view (a $145 target, ~60% downside) citing record unsold inventory and worsening free‑cash‑flow risks — this high‑profile note is catalyzing outsized selling and risk repricing. Business Insider: JPMorgan bearish call
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 deliveries missed expectations and inventories climbed above historical norms, prompting analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts (Truist, Robert W. Baird among others). AmericanBankingNews: Truist cut AmericanBankingNews: Baird cut
• Negative Sentiment: ETF flow and derivative moves: leveraged ETF TSLL fell nearly 7% as traders slammed longs amid the Tesla pullback, increasing short‑term volatility. Benzinga: TSLL selloff
• Negative Sentiment: Supply‑chain/competition risk: CATL’s battery scale and aggressive cost cuts are highlighted as a threat to Tesla’s margin advantage. Benzinga: CATL risk

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on TSLA. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Tesla from $548.00 to $538.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Tesla from $509.00 to $519.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $508.00 price target on shares of Tesla in a report on Thursday, January 29th. DZ Bank reaffirmed a “sell” rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Tesla from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and ten have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Tesla has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $402.61.

Tesla Trading Down 2.2%

The firm has a market cap of $1.32 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 326.69, a P/E/G ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 1.91. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $401.06 and its 200-day moving average is $427.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $24.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.75 billion. Tesla had a net margin of 4.00% and a return on equity of 4.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,264 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.03, for a total value of $898,875.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,106 shares in the company, valued at $7,188,625.18. This represents a 11.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $9,273,947.97. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 33,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,166,913.80. This represents a 43.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 53,804 shares of company stock worth $20,865,598 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 19.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tesla

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TSLA. Narwhal Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 32.8% during the third quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 9,516 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $4,232,000 after purchasing an additional 2,350 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in Tesla by 29.6% during the third quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 32,576 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $14,487,000 after purchasing an additional 7,446 shares during the last quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Tesla by 8.8% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 48,504 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $21,571,000 after purchasing an additional 3,935 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Tesla by 26.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 18,032 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $8,019,000 after buying an additional 3,724 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in shares of Tesla by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 16,565 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $7,367,000 after buying an additional 2,765 shares in the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.