Tesla Downgrade Takes Shares to 2019 Lows

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By Jon C. Ogg Updated Published
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Tesla Downgrade Takes Shares to 2019 Lows

© Courtesy of Tesla

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA | TSLA Price Prediction) saw some rekindled pressure on its stock on Tuesday, and it wasn’t even from a rogue tweet from CEO Elon Musk. Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades and downgrades showed that Barclays has reiterated its Underweight rating and lowered its price target for the stock to $192 from $210.

While other analysts are still bullish on Tesla’s future, this now appears to be the lowest sell-side analyst price target on Wall Street.

Brian Johnson of Barclays believes that the move toward lower-priced Model 3s and the recently communicated store closures are undermining the bullish thesis. Remember that Barclays has been among the more bearish of Tesla’s research crowd. With Tesla having been called “the next Apple” by selling higher-priced electric vehicles with high gross margins, the lower price point is undermining the secular growth story here.

One worry about the price and cost cuts is that it suggests the need to replenish cash rather than talking about the dramatic progress being made on manufacturing and distribution costs.

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Since Musk dialed down the view that Tesla would be profitable in the first quarter instead of the second, there have been more concerns about what might happen to Tesla’s cash balance if or when it pays down its debt.

Tesla’s stock traded down 4.8% at $271.60 on Tuesday morning, and what should stand out is that this is year-to-date low. Tesla shares closed out 2018 at $332.80.

Tesla’s consensus analyst target price was $332.01 ahead of this call, and the 52-week trading range is $244.59 to $387.46. The market capitalization is just over $47 billion.

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About the Author Jon C. Ogg →

Jon Ogg has been a financial news analyst since 1997. Mr. Ogg set up one of the first audio squawk box services for traders called TTN, which he sold in 2003. He has previously worked as a licensed broker to some of the top U.S. and E.U. financial institutions, managed capital, and has raised private capital at the seed and venture stage. He has lived in Copenhagen, Denmark, as well as New York and Chicago, and he now lives in Houston, Texas. Jon received a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance at University of Houston in 1992. www.247wallst.com.

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