Tesla stock is on track for a third consecutive day of gains on Friday. In premarket trading, shares were up 1.5% at $203.44. The Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 futures also showed slight increases of 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively.
Yesterday’s impressive 6.2% surge brought shares above the $200 mark for the first time since January 24th, when the auto maker announced its fourth-quarter earnings. However, the stock plummeted by 12.1% following the earnings report as Tesla management expressed conservative growth projections for 2024.
In 2023, Tesla delivered approximately 1.8 million cars, reflecting a nearly 40% increase compared to the previous year. However, growth for the current year is expected to be below 20%.
Despite the recent gains, there have been no significant developments that explain the Friday or Thursday upticks. Wall Street analysts have not issued any upgrades, downgrades, or changes to their price targets.
Furthermore, it appears that Thursday’s substantial increase may have been partially fueled by a misinterpretation. Tesla filed a form with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealing Elon Musk’s stock ownership. The document indicated that Musk controlled roughly 20% of Tesla shares, but in reality, he owns around 13% of the company’s stock with an additional 7% represented by unexercised stock options.
Musk’s Ownership and Tesla’s Stock Performance
Elon Musk’s ownership of Tesla has recently come under scrutiny after he expressed his desire to have 25% control of the company. Additionally, a Delaware judge invalidated a pay package from 2018 that granted Musk certain options. This ongoing case highlights the attention surrounding Musk’s role in the company.
Despite these developments, recent filings have indicated no changes in the amount or type of Musk’s holdings compared to a year ago.
The performance of Tesla’s stock this year has closely followed Wall Street’s earnings estimates. Currently, analysts project that Tesla will earn approximately $3.08 in 2024, according to FactSet. This estimate represents a 20% decrease from the $3.85 anticipated at the end of December.
It is worth noting that other electric vehicle (EV) companies have also seen movement in their stock prices. Lucid Group experienced a 0.6% increase, NIO shares rose by 2.5%, and BYD stock gained 3.9% during Hong Kong trading. In contrast, General Motors’ stock remained flat.
If Tesla’s stock closes higher on Friday, it will mark the 15th rise in 2024 compared to 18 drops. In comparison, the S&P 500 index has risen 19 times and fallen 13 times during this period. This performance gap has widened to 25 percentage points. Year-to-date, Tesla’s stock has declined by 19.3%, while the S&P 500 has risen by 5.5%.
It is worth mentioning that Tesla’s current stock price is significantly lower than its 52-week high of $299.29, which was achieved last summer.