Musk Gives Model Y Approval
Musk is making quite a few statements, with all that SEC business behind him, and its generating a lot of buzz for Tesla. The most exciting news coming from Tesla is a brand new vehicle. Musk gave the Model Y approval for production, putting it on track for a 2020 debut. We’d received several hints in regard to this SUV crossover, but this is the first concrete information given. We look forward to learning more in the near future.
Along with the announcement of a new SUV crossover model, Musk also revealed future plans for a Tesla pickup truck.* And what about the Tesla Model 3? Is there any news on that? Yes, there is. Elon predicts the Model 3 will achieve its target cost of $35,000 within the next six months. For all the doom and gloom surrounding Tesla in recent months, they seem to be heading toward a record breaking 2019. Speaking of record breaking, how did Tesla fare in the third quarter of 2018?
Q3 Earnings Propel Tesla’s Stock
Tesla released a surprising and exciting Q3 statement that caused Tesla stock to soar by 10%, in the midst of a stock market plunge. Check out this excerpt from Tesla’s press release:
“Q3 2018 was a truly historic quarter for Tesla. Model 3 was the best-selling car in the US in terms of revenue and the 5th best-selling car in terms of volume.
With average weekly Model 3 production through the quarter (excluding planned shutdowns) of roughly 4,300 units per week, we achieved GAAP net income of $312 million. We also delivered on our internal cost efficiency targets, leading to GAAP Model 3 gross margin of more than 20%, which exceeded our guidance. Finally, our total cash increased by $731 million and we had free cash flow (operating cash flow less capex) of $881 million despite less than 10% of that amount coming from key working capital items (payables, receivables, and inventory). Model 3 is attracting customers of both premium and non-premium brands, making it a truly mainstream product.
We are thankful to our customers for being such strong advocates of our products and mission.”
Not only has Tesla gained earnings in the third quarter, they are posed to continue, a feat not previously achieved. Model 3 production is climbing steadily and very soon Tesla will reach long term production goals. The future is looking bright for Tesla!
*The Tesla Truck will have dual motor all-wheel drive w crazy torque & a suspension that dynamically adjusts for load. Those will be standard.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 26, 2018
Pickup truck will have power outlets allowing use of heavy duty 240V, high power tools in field all day. No generator needed.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 26, 2018