Tesla Bear Craig Irwin Turns Bullish On EV Giant, Increases Price Target By 347%: 'There Are Abundant Positive Catalysts'

Roth MKM analyst Craig Irwin on Monday raised Tesla Inc.’s TSLA price target by 347% from $85 to $380 and upgraded the rating to a “buy” from “neutral.”

What Happened: A long-time Tesla bear, Irwin turned bullish on Tesla on Monday.

Talking about his change in opinion in an appearance on CNBC, Irwin noted the benefits that Tesla might reap out of its CEO’s new association and support for President-elect Donald Trump.

“This quarter is probably the last quarter of relative weakness; Now he (Elon) has got a new pool of buyers. Conservatives that might not have looked at EVs quite as closely in the past that allow an acceleration of demand in the core U.S. market,” said Irwin.

“I don’t see very many negative catalysts… There are abundant positive catalysts… Bias is now to the upside, not the downside. The market cap may be huge… but they are doing big things.”

Other EV brands that relied on EV subsidies will face a “sunset” under Trump given reports that he is planning to reduce or remove EV-related subsidies, he noted, in a positive push for Tesla.

Irwin is also optimistic about the contribution of the Cybercab to the Tesla stock’s value for investors. “We’re going to see incremental progress and people are going to be able to have a tangible experience, and that’s what I think drives value in the stock and drives enthusiasm to own the stock.”

Why It Matters: Tesla shares rallied following Trump’s win in the Presidential elections.

Musk actively campaigned for Trump in the swing state of Pennsylvania and the President-elect named the billionaire to lead the Department of Government Efficiency aimed at bringing down government bureaucracy, slashing excess regulations, cutting waste expenditures, and restructuring federal agencies.

The newly-forged relationship has caused investors to be positive about the way forward for Tesla with hopes of easing restrictions on the development of technology aimed at vehicle autonomy and removal of EV-related subsidies that may harm rival smaller players in favor of Tesla.

Price Action: Tesla shares closed up 3.5% at $357.09 on Monday. The stock is up 44% year-to-date, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

The Tesla stock has a consensus rating of “Buy.” The average price target of $339 based three most recent ratings from Roth MKM, Stifel, and UBS implies a 5% downside.

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

Read Next:

• Tesla Rival BYD Marks 68% Growth In November Sales Driven By Popularity Of Plug-In Hybrid EVs

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock