Tesla (TSLA) stock is slipping and finally closed at $163 losing approx 18% as the electric-vehicle maker reported slight revenue and profit misses and gross margin that dipped below 20% to 19.3% as the cost of recent price cuts hit profitability.
For the quarter, Tesla reported Q1 revenue of $23.33 billion, slightly below Street estimates of $23.35 billion, with Q1 adjusted EPS coming in at $0.85, below Street estimates of $0.86. That revenue figure for Q1 represents a slight dip from the $24.32 billion Tesla reported in Q4, but still 24% higher than a year ago.
On the profitability end, Tesla reported adjusted net income of $2.9 billion, less than the $3.03 billion estimated by the Street, and a billion less than last quarter and $700 million less than a year ago. With revenue staying flat-ish and profit dipping, the effects of margin compression could be at play here.
“Although we implemented price reductions on many vehicle models across regions in the first quarter, our operating margins reduced at a manageable rate. We expect ongoing cost reduction of our vehicles, including improved production efficiency at our newest factories and lower logistics costs, and remain focused on operating leverage as we scale.” the company said in a statement.
Tesla has cut prices for some of its Model Y and Model 3 vehicles in the U.S. for the sixth time this year to juice demand as competition among electric-vehicle makers heats up around the world.
