Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the thirty-eight analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $318.34.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TSLA. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Tesla from $430.00 to $410.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Tesla from $420.00 to $345.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Roth Mkm raised shares of Tesla from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $380.00 in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Tesla in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $475.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Glj Research reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Tesla in a report on Tuesday, March 11th.

Tesla Price Performance

Tesla stock opened at $263.55 on Friday. Tesla has a 1 year low of $138.80 and a 1 year high of $488.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $321.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $321.68. The company has a market cap of $847.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 129.19, a PEG ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.50.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.66 EPS 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Tesla will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Tesla news, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $413.56, for a total value of $2,894,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 108,965 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,063,565.40. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 112,390 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.04, for a total value of $43,162,255.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 85,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,643,400. This trade represents a 56.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 477,228 shares of company stock worth $166,849,043 over the last quarter. 20.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Tesla

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

Tesla Company Profile

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.