Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Down 8.1% – Here’s Why

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) fell 8.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $301.41 and last traded at $303.84. 53,415,715 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 74,668,773 shares. The stock had previously closed at $330.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on TSLA. Phillip Securities lowered Tesla from a “moderate sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Glj Research restated a “sell” rating and issued a $24.86 price objective on shares of Tesla in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Tesla from $295.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “cautious” rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Tesla from $226.00 to $259.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $319.57.

Tesla Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $397.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $314.96. The stock has a market cap of $977.98 billion, a PE ratio of 148.88, a PEG ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.02.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.08). Tesla had a return on equity of 10.31% and a net margin of 7.26%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In other news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.43, for a total value of $2,481,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 105,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,226,491.76. This represents a 6.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 100,000 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.63, for a total transaction of $41,163,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,222,802. The trade was a 94.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 523,386 shares of company stock worth $195,995,200 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 20.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tesla

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Tesla by 1,248.9% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 199,229 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $52,124,000 after buying an additional 184,459 shares during the period. Destination Wealth Management increased its position in shares of Tesla by 12.1% in the third quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 12,597 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $3,296,000 after acquiring an additional 1,359 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in shares of Tesla by 126.7% during the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 1,594 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 891 shares during the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of Tesla by 59.2% in the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 117,457 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $30,593,000 after purchasing an additional 43,685 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Tesla by 3.3% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 309,382 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $80,944,000 after purchasing an additional 9,919 shares during the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Tesla

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.