Shares of Tesla fell on earnings and have continued lower so far during the conference call. The company warned about "near-term uncertainty" on sales and profits but said there were long-term growth prospects. Revenues topped estimates but earnings missed.
Details:
- EPS 0.50 vs 0.56 expected
- Revenue $28.095B vs $26.70B expected (record quarter)
Note that this was the final quarter of US subsidies and sales were at a record in the US but that will rapidly unwind in Q4 due to pull-forward demand as the $7000 credit disappears.
TSLA after hours
On the call:
- In the conference call, the CFO said they were seeing headwinds to the energy storage business from tariffs and competition
- CFO: Total tariff impact in Q3 was in excess of $400m
- EMEA delivers up 25% in Q3
- Capex will grow substantially in 2026
- Musk says they will probably unveil Optimus V3 in Q1
- Musk says confident of expanding Tesla's production
- Musk says expecting to have no safety drivers in large parts of Austin by year end
- Musk says will 'boost production' ahead of robotaxis but doesn't specify timelines
The proper self-driving could be a big tailwind but if that doesn't happen, the drop off in regulatory credits and subsidies for EVs are going to make it very hard for Tesla to turn a profit in 2026, particularly if the energy storage business is struggling.
