Tesla Stock Dives As Q1 Deliveries Disappoint — But EV Giant Reclaims Top Spot From Chinese Rival

Electric car giant Tesla, Inc. TSLA reported a dip in first-quarter deliveries, just as many feared, sending its stock lower in premarket trading.

Tesla’s Q1 Numbers: Tesla delivered 386,810 vehicles in the first quarter, down from 422,875 a year earlier. Production figures were also lower, at 433,371 compared to 440,808 units in the year-ago period. This marks Tesla’s first year-over-year decline in deliveries since pandemic-hit 2020.

Tesla Misses Analyst Estimates: The company fell short of analyst expectations. The company-compiled median consensus estimate shared by Future Fund’s Gary Black was 431,000 units. Independent Tesla observer Troy Teslike on X, formerly, Twitter, estimated first-quarter production and sales of 409,000 units and 429,954 units, respectively.

	Q1’24 (units)	Q1’23 (units)	Y-o-Y Growth	Q4’23 (units)	Q-o-Q Growth
Production	433,371	440,808	-1.69%	494,989	-12.45%
Deliveries	386,810	422,875	-8.53%	484,507	-20.16%

“Decline in volumes was partially due to the early phase of the production ramp of the updated Model 3 at our Fremont factory and factory shutdowns resulting from shipping diversions caused by the Red Sea conflict and an arson attack at Gigafactory Berlin,” the company said.

Tesla Takes Back Crown: Tesla reclaimed the title of the world’s leading battery electric vehicle manufacturer by volume after getting edged out in the fourth quarter of 2023 by Warren Buffett-backed BYD Company Limited BYDDY BYDDF.

Rival Rivian Automotive, Inc. RIVN reported first-quarter deliveries of 13,588 EVs and affirmed its 2024 production goal of 57,000 units.

Tesla’s Price War Backfires: Tesla’s price cuts in China and globally failed to significantly boost sales volume. Competitors, particularly in China, matched the reductions, limiting the impact.

Tesla’s Other Headwinds: Analysts also highlighted softness in European demand and potential supply disruptions in the U.S. due to the Model 3 refresh and a brief shutdown of the Giga Berlin factory.

Tesla Model Breakdown: Tesla’s lineup includes the more affordable Model Y and Model 3, the premium Model S and X, and the Tesla Semi and Cybertruck. 

Curiously enough, the EV giant again did not reveal the exact number of Cybertrucks that were made and delivered, casting doubt on some analyst theories about the truck being a game-changer.

	Production (in units)	Deliveries (in units)
Model Y/3	412,376	369,783
Other Models	20,995	17,027

See Also: Everything You Need To Know About Tesla Stock

Tesla Looking Ahead: Tesla’s first-quarter earnings report, due on April 23, is the next key event for investors. Analysts estimate earnings per share of 60 cents on revenue of $24.07 billion, down from 85 cents and $23.33 billion a year ago. These estimates may be revised after the delivery figures are announced.

Investors will likely be looking for updates on a sub-$30,000 electric vehicle and the progress of the Full Self-Driving (FSD) software rollout during the earnings call.

Tesla Stock Slides: Tesla’s stock price fell by  6.8% to $163.31 in premarket trading Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data. The stock has been on a downward trend since peaking in November 2021.

Despite a strong first half of 2023 fueled by price cuts, the stock has struggled recently due to slowing volume growth and declining margins. It ended 2023 up about 102% thanks to the early-year gains but has lost 29.5% so far in 2024, making it the worst performer on the S&P 500.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.

Read Next: ‘It’s Like Magic,’ Says Elon Musk As Tesla’s Supervised FSD Opens To Rave Reviews On One-Month Free-Trialing

Photo via Shutterstock