After the US stock market closed on Wednesday, Tesla released a slightly weaker than expected third quarter financial report. After the report was released, the company's stock price rose by 2.4% in after hours trading.
However, Tesla CEO Elon Musk warned during a earnings conference call that Cybertruck would not generate significant positive cash flow for 12 to 18 months after production began, and emphasized that the company would focus on making cars cheaper in a high interest rate environment. As of press release, the stock fell nearly 5%.
In addition, when asked when Tesla may ultimately deliver an autonomous taxi or when relevant software can be released, Musk did not provide a specific timeline. He said, "We believe that all cars we are producing and have been producing for some time can be fully autonomous
At the end of the conference call, Musk said that the ongoing wars around the world may shake the economy (implying the Palestinian Israeli conflict and the Russia-Ukraine conflict). He compared Tesla to a world-class ship, but he said, "In storms, even big ships face challenges
According to the financial report, Tesla's revenue for the third quarter was 23.4 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 9%, which is the slowest growth rate in more than three years, while analysts expect it to be 24.06 billion US dollars; Adjusted earnings per share for the third quarter were $0.66, with analysts expecting $0.74; The market's most concerned gross profit margin dropped to 17.9%, slightly lower than Wall Street's expected 18%.
Continue to lower prices
During this conference call, Musk emphasized that Tesla will still strive to lower the prices of its cars.
He said, "I am concerned about the high interest rate environment we are in. Car buyers are concerned about how much money they need to pay back each month. If interest rates remain high or even higher, it will be much more difficult for people to buy cars
The importance of cost cannot be overemphasized... We must make our products more affordable so that people can afford them. Reducing the cost of Tesla cars is like a 'game of power, just a few cents', "he added.
Like Musk, Tesla's Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer, Vaibhav Taneja, also emphasized that the company will "unwaveringly pursue further cost reduction in 2024", which involves engineering and factory operations.
Reduce expectations for Cyber Trucks
The official account of Cybertruck posted on Wednesday local time that the Cybertruck delivery event will be held on November 30th at a super factory in Austin, Texas. Musk forwarded this post.
However, Musk lowered his financial expectations for Cyber Trucks during the earnings conference call. He said, "What I want to emphasize is that Cybertruck will face significant challenges in achieving mass production." He also pointed out that it will take approximately 18 months for Cybertruck to achieve positive cash flow.
If you want to do something radical, innovative, and truly unique, such as Cybertruck, it is very difficult because there is nothing to replicate. You not only need to invent cars, but also the methods of manufacturing them. So the more unknown fields, the harder it is to predict the results, "he added.
Mexican factory
Musk stated that Tesla still plans to establish a car factory in Monterrey, Mexico, but due to the global economic situation, it is not yet ready to "fully" build.
He stated on Wednesday during a earnings conference call that the electric vehicle manufacturer is still "laying the foundation" for the factory. Musk said that the initial phase of the factory will begin early next year, and it is well known that his estimation of time may be incorrect.
Prior to this, people had been speculating for a long time whether the factory, which was first announced in March, would really be built. The northern state of New Leon, which plans to build a factory, stated earlier this month that Tesla has requested the state to improve electricity, water, and transportation before starting planning for construction this year.
It is reported that the factory is expected to require approximately $10 billion in investment, and both the Mexican state and federal governments tout it as a sign that Mexico is attracting top companies as part of its nearshore appeal. Tesla executives and local officials have denied reports that the factory has been cancelled.