Tesla Q3 Earnings Are Imminent. Can Nio Foreshadow What's To Come? What To Know Before The Print

Tesla Inc TSLA shares were trading down slightly Wednesday afternoon ahead of the automaker's third-quarter report, but the stock is up 6% over the last five sessions, suggesting investors have high expectations for the electric vehicle maker.

The Tesla options market is pricing in a 7.2% move in Tesla's share price by the end of the week, so traders should anticipate some sizable post-earnings volatility for Tesla.

Market Expectations: Tesla's beaten-down stock has rebounded in recent days but remains down about 17% overall since the company reported just 343,830 vehicle deliveries in the third quarter, missing consensus analyst estimates of around 360,000 deliveries.

Related Link: Tesla Tops Auto Stocks For Short Sellers: How Do Ford, Nio, Lucid And Rivian Rank?

Analysts are expecting Tesla to report adjusted third-quarter EPS of 99 cents on revenue of $21.96 billion. That revenue number would represent 59.5% growth from a year ago.

Tesla's earnings expectations have been falling along with its stock price over the last month. Tesla's average analyst EPS estimate is down from $1.05 30 days ago.

Related Link: ARK Invest Short Sellers Have $2.3B In Profits So Far In 2022

Commentary From Musk: In addition to top and bottom-line numbers, investors will be watching for updates on Tesla's new factories in Germany and Texas.

In September, Chinese EV competitor Nio Inc - ADR NIO said its July and August sales were negatively impacted by supply chain disruptions.

Nio also said it did not anticipate a resurgence in COVID-19 cases in China in September would have as large of an impact on production as earlier outbreaks in the second quarter.

Tesla's controversial CEO Elon Musk isn't always on the company's earnings calls, but he has said he plans to be joining the call Wednesday.

Investors may get updates on Musk's $44-billion acquisition of Twitter Inc TWTR, particularly on whether he plans to sell additional shares of Tesla stock to help fund the buyout.

The 7% post-earnings move implied by the options market may seem large, but Tesla has a long history of earnings volatility. In fact, a 7% move through Friday would be roughly in-line with Tesla's average move following its last four earnings reports.

Benzinga's Take: Tesla's stock has generated three positive returns and just one negative return on the day following its last four reports. Even after Tesla's 44.9% year-to-date drop, the stock still trades at an elevated 11.1 times sales and 37.2 times forward earnings.

Photo courtesy of Tesla.