Negative Tesla voices growing

Lekander was a former portfolio manager at investment firm Lansdowne Partners who successfully called a 2018 rally in carbon prices. Since 2020, Clean Energy Transition has been short Tesla’s stock, meaning Lekander’s firm will profit if the automaker’s shares fall. In a March 2021 interview with CNBC, Lekander called for Tesla’s stock to go down. At the time of the interview, Tesla’s shares closed at $233.94. On Tuesday, the stock closed at $166.63. But Lekander also called for a comeback of the traditional automakers, singling out Volkswagen. Volkswagen’s shares have fallen around 53% since that call, though they have rallied at the start of this year.

If Tesla’s stock hit $14, that would represent around 91% downside from Tuesday’s close. Tesla’s shares have already fallen more than 30% this year. “I think however Tesla cannot be at $14. If it falls under a certain level because of everything that’s been going on, it’s going to go bust,” Lekander stated. He emphasized that Tesla’s business model has been based on strong revenue growth, vertical integration, and direct-to-consumer sales, which could pose significant challenges in light of the current market conditions and demand issues.

Dan Ives, a noted Tesla bull at Wedbush Securities, who has a $300 price target on the EV maker, has become concerned about the recent performance of the company. He stated, “While we were anticipating a bad 1Q, this was an unmitigated disaster 1Q that is hard to explain away. We view this as a seminal moment in the Tesla story for Musk to either turn this around and reverse the black eye 1Q performance.” Analysts at HSBC and TD Cowen have also cut their price targets on Tesla’s stock following disappointing delivery numbers.

Cathie Wood buys Tesla stock

Tesla is arguably one of the most divisive stocks on Wall Street, with supporters and critics voicing their opinions on the company’s future prospects. Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest bought Tesla stock for some of its funds this week ahead of the first-quarter delivery numbers in a sign of support. On the other hand, analysts like Tom Narayan from RBC Capital Markets see long-term potential in Tesla. Narayan believes that despite recent challenges, Tesla’s energy storage business and advancements in autonomy could drive the company’s growth and valuation in the future.