But how the company does in the first quarter isn’t the biggest concern for Tesla shareholders. It’s what lies ahead for the company. Here’s a rundown of what to look for in its earnings report and call with investors.
Nine months ago, Musk announced he would generally stop participating in the quarterly call, saying it took too much of his time. That lasted exactly one quarter.
Chinese lockdowns
“The main focus of the earnings call must be around supply coming out of China,” said Ives. “That’s the biggest overhang for the stock right now. They’ve already lost about 50,000 cars of production so far in the second quarter. The question is are they going to give any guidance?”
Battery development
Once upon a time, automakers lived and died by their internal combustion engines. Features such as fuel injection and measures such as horsepower were the keys to attracting buyers and getting top dollars.
Now in the age of EVs, it’s batteries and a new set of performance measures: How far can a car go on a single charge? How fast can it charge? And how much will it cost to build?
The outlook for production of that battery, and the supply of chips and raw materials it needs to build them, is crucial for Tesla’s plans to increase vehicle production.
New factories
How fast it can ramp up production, particularly with the supply chain problems caused by China’s Covid lockdowns, and to a lesser extent the war in Ukraine, is crucially important if the company is to hit its growth targets for the year.
Tesla’s market cap is more than the combined value of the 12 largest automakers on the planet not because it is so much more profitable, but because of its growth projections. If it can’t stick to its better than 50% annual growth path, the company’s stock could take a tumble.
What will it mean for Tesla if Musk buys Twitter?
Finally, if Musk is on the call it will be particularly interesting to see if he makes any comments about his efforts to buy Twitter. So far his comments have been in broad strokes, not details.
And he hasn’t said anything about whether he plans to be involved in the day-to-day management of Twitter.
Musk also hasn’t disclosed how he will finance his bid to buy the additional shares, which could cost in the neighborhood of $40 billion. Will he have to sell some of his Tesla stake to come up with the cash? If so, that would likely put downward pressure on Tesla’s share price.
