Early this morning, before market open, Tesla sent out a press release to report a solid 112,000 vehicle deliveries in Q4. In Q3, Tesla delivered just over 97,000 vehicles. Q4 deliveries therefore surpassed that of Q3 by 15.4%, and Tesla beat yearly guidance of 360,000 vehicles by an even 2%.
As of 11:30am EST, Tesla ($TSLA) stock traded at $448.48 per share, up 4.22% from the day's open; as compared to the S&P 500, which weighed in at $3237.01, up 0.64% from the morning's open.
Tesla's press release attributes the quarter's success to ramping production in both the US and the newly built Gigafactory IV in Shanghai. Recent behavior from both Tesla corporate and Elon Musk indicate increasingly rational behavior. Unlike previous quarters, no delivery emails were "leaked" hinting at the quarter's outcome. Also unique, Tesla's press release indicates several thousand made-in-China Model 3's have already been fully produced, but only 15 were delivered to certain employees on Tesla's China team.
One may find it curious that Tesla would sit on several thousand potential deliveries through the end of the quarter. This action can likely be taken as a sign of confidence on the part of Tesla and Elon Musk, that the company is becoming strong enough to act reservedly.
Tesla's stock has held the nearly 4.5% gain since market open, although it at one point hit an all-time-high just shy of $455 per share. This gain comes even on a particularly sluggish market day, with markets down potentially due to news of a US airstrike killing a powerful military leader in Iran, and the subsequent trend of #WorldWarIII on Twitter.
Despite the potential impact of war fears on overall market health, Iran is a large source of oil for the United States. If oil and gas prices spike dramatically in a short period of time, or if general attitude towards the reliance on foreign oil faces a steep downtrend, a more widespread adoption of electric vehicles (of which Tesla is far and away the top contender) could occur.
Cover image used courtesy of Silas Stein / Picture Alliance / Getty Images
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This article is for informational purposes only. You should not construe any such information or other material as an investment, financial, or other advice. Nothing contained in this article constitutes a solicitation, recommendation, endorsement, or offer by Christopher Larson, Tesmanian, or any third party service provider to buy or sell any securities or other financial instruments in this or in any other jurisdiction in which such solicitation or offer would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.
Christopher Larson is not a shareholder in Tesla, Inc., and does not currently (at the time of this article's publishing) hold any bonds, options, or securities in Tesla Inc. or its affiliates.
