SoFi CEO enters prepaid forward contract on 1.5 million shares
Investing.com - Piper Sandler has maintained its Overweight rating and $400.00 price target on Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) following a tour and meeting with the company’s investor relations team. The electric vehicle giant, currently trading at $346, has demonstrated strong market performance with a 68% return over the past year, though InvestingPro analysis indicates the stock is trading above its Fair Value.
The firm noted Tesla has expanded its robotaxi service area in Austin to over 170 square miles, compared to Waymo’s approximately 90 square miles in the same city. Tesla plans to launch Full Self-Driving (FSD) version 14 in September or October, which should provide Tesla owners with software comparable to the robotaxis operating in Austin.
Piper Sandler reported Tesla expects tariff costs to rise in the second half of the year, with the impact on cost of goods sold estimated at "a couple thousand" USD per unit. The firm also noted U.S. tax credit changes are driving a "pull-forward" in demand during the third quarter, both for Tesla and competitors.
Tesla’s guiding principle remains defending free cash flow and protecting its self-funding status, according to the research note. The company anticipates that by 2026, its Optimus humanoid robot should be moving and staging parts within Tesla facilities.
The firm highlighted that Optimus can work 18 hours (approximately two human shifts), and at that operational rate, a $100,000 cost for the robot would be justified based on the productivity gains.
In other recent news, Tesla has raised the price of its Cyberbeast model by $15,000, bringing the total cost to $114,990. This increase accompanies the introduction of a new "Luxe Package," which features supervised Full Self-Driving capability and complimentary access to Tesla’s supercharging network. Meanwhile, Tesla evacuated part of its German plant following a fire in a building processing battery packs, though no injuries or environmental damage were reported. The company is also facing a certified class action lawsuit from California drivers, who allege that Elon Musk misled them about the self-driving capabilities of Tesla vehicles over an eight-year period.
Additionally, Tesla announced that its six-seater Model Y L will soon be available in the Chinese market, sharing this news on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. In a strategic move, Tesla has reassigned its engineering staff following the termination of its Dojo AI project. The staff has been redistributed across various teams, with software-focused employees now reporting to Ashok Elluswamy, who leads the company’s AI initiatives. These developments highlight Tesla’s ongoing adjustments in both product offerings and organizational structure.
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