Tesla has once again reported a decline in profits and revenues, affected by Elon Musk’s political involvement. The American electric vehicle brand missed Wall Street analysts’ expectations in its second-quarter results, with earnings per share and revenues falling below forecasts.
Adjusted earnings per share were $USD0.40, while revenues dropped 12% to $USD22.5 billion, both slightly below the expectations of analysts surveyed by “Bloomberg,” who had anticipated $USD0.42 and $USD22.64 billion, respectively.
Meanwhile, the net income of the company led by Elon Musk fell 16% to $USD1.17 billion, compared to $USD1.40 billion recorded in the same period last year.
The important profitability indicator for companies, the gross margin, exceeded expectations, standing at 17.2%, down from 18% in the same period last year and above forecasts that pointed to 16.5%. Tesla’s total production remained stable year-on-year at 410,240 vehicles. Deliveries, on the other hand, fell 13% to 384,120.
The growth of competition and the controversy surrounding Elon Musk’s political positions ultimately reflected in the sales and numbers for the second quarter.
In the results presentation teleconference, Musk reminded that the “desire to buy” a Tesla car “is very high”, but that people “do not have enough money to buy it. Literally, that is the problem, not the lack of desire to buy, but the lack of ability. Therefore, the more affordable we can make the car, the better, in my opinion, it will be.”
The CEO of Tesla also warned that the American electric vehicle brand “will probably have some tough quarters”, with the end of incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles in the U.S. after the third quarter. “I am not saying there will be tough quarters, but that we may have them”.
The company now promises to continue investing in research and development and says that the beginning of the third quarter marks “the beginning of our transition from leadership in the electric vehicle and renewable energy industry to also becoming a leader in AI, robotics, and related services”.
