Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Trading Up 6.3% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) were up 6.3% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $289.33 and last traded at $289.08. Approximately 54,579,263 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 91,918,281 shares. The stock had previously closed at $272.06.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TSLA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Tesla from $515.00 to $430.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Tesla from $440.00 to $320.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Tesla from $492.00 to $474.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Tesla from $430.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $319.12.

Tesla Stock Up 2.7 %

The firm has a market cap of $898.37 billion, a PE ratio of 136.80, a P/E/G ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $327.40 and its 200-day moving average is $321.69.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.08). Tesla had a return on equity of 10.31% and a net margin of 7.26%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 100,000 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.63, for a total transaction of $41,163,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,400 shares in the company, valued at $2,222,802. This trade represents a 94.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,672 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.73, for a total value of $718,046.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 26,950 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,242,273.50. This represents a 9.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 477,228 shares of company stock valued at $166,849,043 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 20.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Tesla by 79.5% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 70 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Tesla by 75.6% during the fourth quarter. Horrell Capital Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. GS Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Tesla by 193.3% in the fourth quarter. GS Investments Inc. now owns 88 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Tesla in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Tesla during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 66.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Tesla

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.