Tesla Stock Rises Nearly 300-Fold Since IPO

Tesla’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) IPO was on June 29, 2010. An $10,000 investment that day would be worth $3 million today. Given Tesla’s current problems, it is hard to remember if that has been so successful.

CNBC reports that Tesla’s first car was its Roadster, followed by the Model S. The Model Y and Model 3 are the best selling today. Buyers continue to look for reasonably priced EVs. The Model 3 is close with a base price of $33,390 which includes a $7,500 tax credit. The Trump Administration plans to eliminate that credit.

Tesla once owned the EV market share in the US. Its share was almost 80% in 2018. That was before legacy companies like GM and Ford ramped up their efforts to catch Tesla. They invested tens of billions of dollars. Neither has much to show for it. Neither has a market share over 10%. However, legacy companies have started to chip away at Tesla’s huge lead. Today, its market share has dropped to 48% in the first quarter of this year. Ford (NYSE: F), GM (NYSE GM), and Hyundai/Kia each have a market share of 7% or 8%. The major German companies have market share below that, but it is a sign that some of the century old car companies have become Tesla competitors.

Tesla’s shareholders have had a rough 2025 so far. The S&P 500 is up 5%. Tesla is down 20%. Tesla’s unit deliveries have been hammered. Part of the trouble began over a year ago.

Tesla has been humbled in China, the world’s largest EV market. Several local companies led by BYD are the recent market share leaders. On a shorter term basis, CEO Elon Musk’s relations with President Trump and Musk’s attempt to sharply cut federal government expenses have driven sales down in the US. Comments about politics in Europe may have contributed to double digit drops most months this year.

For Tesla to get back on track, at least in terms of its share price, Musk has to show that Tesla is primarily an AI company. To do so, Tesla has to dominate the self-driving market. Real self driving means the driver does not have to be engaged at all. Even if Tesla accomplishes it has aggressive competition from several companies led by Alphabet’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) Waymo.

Could Musk get Tesla back on track? If he can show he dominates self driving, the answer is probably “yes.”