Citigroup (c) Promotion Tesla (TSLA) on Wednesday, although the electric car giant has been a loser this year, it has fallen 52% in 2022, and fell again to near levels when the company joined the S&P 500 index. Tesla shares rose on Wednesday.
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Citi analyst Itay Michaeli moved Tesla stock to “neutral,” up from “sell” on Wednesday. Michaeli also increased the price target to $176, up from the previous $141.33. Micheli told investors that Tesla’s stock decline in 2022 has “balanced” the risks and rewards in the near term.
The Citi analyst also pointed to the recently signed Inflation Reduction Act, and its support for expanding lithium batteries and electric vehicles, as reasons for long-term optimism about Tesla stock.
Tesla stock rose about 7% during Wednesday Market trading. Shares closed Tuesday up 1.2%, at 169.91. Early Wednesday, Reuters reported that CEO Elon Musk mentioned that South Korea was a prime candidate for a potential investment in the gigafactory. This was stated by President Yoon Seok Yul following a virtual meeting between Musk and Yoon.
Analyst Tesla Stock optimism
Below is a Citi research note Morgan Stanley (Ms) Analyst Adam Jonas wrote late Tuesday that Tesla stock is “nearing $150 bear status, driven by price cuts in China, slowing demand for electric vehicles and other market currents (Twitter, Crypto?)”
Jonas has not changed his “overweight” valuation and $330 price target on Tesla stock. Jonas added that Tesla is expected to see its revenue grow by 37% in 2023, equivalent to 1.8 million units, with about $15 billion in free cash flow.
“All of the EV OEMs we cover are burning significant amounts of cash, according to our projections,” Jonas wrote.
Tesla is on track for its worst year ever
He added, “We believe Tesla’s ‘competition gap’ could widen, particularly as electric vehicle prices shift from inflation to deflation.” “In terms of[the inflationary reduction act]we believe Tesla is by far the best OEM in terms of potential eligibility for consumer tax and production credits.”
However, Jonas also added his voice to a list of analysts who view Musk’s focus on Twitter, and the evolving news cycle, as negative for Tesla stock.
On November 11, he was a lead analyst and longtime bull analyst on Tesla stock Issue a warning That Musk’s Twitter charm was hurting Tesla.
“While it’s hard to quantify, we think there must be some sort of ‘circuit breaker’ sentiment around the Twitter situation to assuage investor concerns about Tesla,” Jonas wrote on Tuesday.
Tesla Stock, Misk and Twitter
Since Musk took over Twitter on Oct. 28, Tesla stock is down about 25%.
Musk has cut nearly half of the social media site’s staff while frequently tweeting about his plans and policies. Musk also personally responded to customer complaints and suggestions. There has been widespread confusion about the verification features being rolled out and there is speculation that the company may enter bankruptcy.
Musk too She sold 19.5 million shares of Tesla stock For $3.95 billion on November 4, 7, and 8, the decision to sell some of his shares in Tesla came a few days after Musk finalized the $44 billion Twitter purchase.
Last week, Musk testified in a Delaware court to defend himself in a lawsuit against shareholders.
While testifying, Musk said he expected to “reduce my time on Twitter and find someone else running Twitter over time,” according to news reports.
Please follow Kit Norton on Twitter @employee for more coverage.
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