Tesla's Q1 Results 'Beat On Every Metric' That Mattered

Tesla Motors Inc TSLA could be on its way to becoming the next big tech company. Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry was especially impressed by the firm's first quarter results. "I think they beat on every metric -- the deliveries, as well as the production and the guidance is also slightly better," Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry told Benzinga. "The company said they would be making 55,000 cars by the end of the year. I think based on the improved production capacities that they have put in place. I think they could do, in the second half of the year, production could ramp up even more, and I think they can do better than that." Chowdhry estimates that Tesla will end up producing 60,000 to 62,000 cars in 2015. He said the consensus was that the automaker might reduce production guidance, but that wasn't the case. He said the Model X is still on schedule, so that element was pretty much in-line with expectations. "I think the wild card, from a positive angle, is the batteries, which I think none of us have factored into our models," said Chowdhry. "I think, starting in October, it's more of a fourth quarter play, but it's more of a 2016 play. The addressable market is close to $200 billion." Chowdhry concluded by saying that Tesla is solving "big, big problems very boldly." "The investment thesis on Tesla is beautiful," he said. "You cannot say the same for software companies, like Salesforce.com, or social networking companies." The only other company Chowdhry holds in similarly high regard is Apple Inc. AAPL.

Related Link: Tesla Q1 Earnings Live Blog

Powerwall Made An Impact

Sean Udall, CIO of Quantum Trading Strategies and author of The TechStrat Report, wasn't as impressed with Tesla's results. He said that without the battery announcement and the commentary provided in Tesla's release, the stock would be down a minimum of 15 points. "If this stock had to get by or exist without that battery announcement and commentary, I think you'd see the stock hugely lower," Udall told Benzinga. Despite this, Udall is becoming a fan of Tesla. "I've been saying all along, if Tesla becomes a battery company…you have to value the stock much differently," he said. "I like companies that have the potential to create and expand huge, total addressable markets. The battery market is a huge market." Udall also thinks Tesla needs to release the Model X on time as promised. He thinks it is imperative for the company to offer another vehicle in its lineup. Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this report.