Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stock Price Down 1.2% on Analyst Downgrade

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares were down 1.2% on Thursday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on the stock from $218.00 to $200.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a buy rating on the stock. Tesla traded as low as $175.70 and last traded at $177.68. 30,441,129 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 101,827,852 shares. The stock had previously closed at $179.83.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on TSLA. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Tesla from $200.00 to $180.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Tesla from $295.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Tesla from $224.00 to $196.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Tesla from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $200.00 to $125.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Tesla presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $204.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In related news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 93,706 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.73, for a total value of $18,247,369.38. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,950. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, SVP Xiaotong Zhu sold 687 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.11, for a total value of $121,674.57. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 63,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,188,215.81. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 93,706 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.73, for a total transaction of $18,247,369.38. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,920,950. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 198,598 shares of company stock worth $36,952,434. 20.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Tesla by 9.8% in the first quarter. Axiom Financial Strategies LLC now owns 906 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $777,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Tesla by 19.7% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,001,923 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $1,079,672,000 after purchasing an additional 164,789 shares during the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Tesla by 25.7% in the 1st quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 396 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC increased its holdings in shares of Tesla by 33.4% in the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 3,567 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $3,844,000 after buying an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Tesla by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 72,167 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $77,767,000 after acquiring an additional 4,593 shares during the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Tesla Trading Down 1.8 %

The company has a market cap of $562.50 billion, a PE ratio of 41.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.01 and a beta of 2.41. The company has a 50-day moving average of $188.49 and a 200 day moving average of $222.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $25.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.64 billion. Tesla had a return on equity of 16.62% and a net margin of 15.50%. Tesla’s revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.07 EPS. Analysts predict that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

About Tesla

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.