Tesla had a very strange third quarter. Net income fell 37% to $1.39 billion in the three months leading up to September 30. However, yields rose sharply as buyers in the US flocked to dealers, hoping to take advantage of the expiring $7,500 EV tax credit that Musk’s old friend, President Donald Trump, personally killed.
The Austin, Texas-based automaker delivered a record 497,099 vehicles in the third quarter, boosting Tesla’s sales by 12% to $28.1 billion. Auto revenues rose 6% to $21.2 billion, and energy revenues rose 44% to $3.42 billion. Services and other revenues also rose 25% to $3.48 billion, but it’s not all sunshine and rainbows for Tesla. By Automotive News:
Tesla said its overall gross margin fell to 18 percent from 19.8 percent in the same quarter last year.
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“While we face near-term uncertainty due to shifting trade, tariff and fiscal policies, we are focused on long-term growth and value creation,” Tesla said in its third-quarter earnings report.
Analysts had expected Tesla to report sales of $26.2 billion in the July-September quarter, according to data compiled by LSEG cited by Reuters.
Musk didn’t just use the forum to beg for money. He also talked about the lofty (and rather unattainable) autonomy goals he has set for the company.
CEO Elon Musk said during the Oct. 22 earnings call that vehicle production will expand once Tesla can offer customers a fully autonomous option that no longer requires the driver to pay attention to the road. That will happen soon with the still incomplete Full Self-Driving software, he said.
“What it really comes down to is, can you text while you’re in the car? And if you tell someone the car is so good now, you can be on the phone and texting all the time while you’re in the car, anyone who can buy the car will buy the car,” Musk said.
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Musk said on the call that demand will also be boosted next year by the launch of its special CyberCab robotaxi, which will have no human controls. The CyberCab will be used in Tesla’s taxi fleet and sold to customers, Musk said.
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“We expect to have no safety drivers in at least large parts of Austin by the end of this year,” Musk said on the call. “And then by the end of the year, we expect to have robotaxis in about eight to 10 urban areas.”
Musk said in July that he expected the fully autonomous Tesla robotaxis to serve half the US population by the end of this year.
Musk says the rollout of the robotaxi will be subject to regulatory approval. Yeah, buddy. I would certainly hope so.
He also talked about the Optimus robot, but it’s such a pipe dream idea that I’m not going to waste your time thinking about it.
Tesla’s 2025 deliveries are expected to fall to about 1.6 million vehicles – down about 200,000 from 2024.
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