3 weeks ago
Shares of Tesla Inc., rallied in extended trading on Tuesday, after CEO Elon Musk said that he will be pulling back significantly on the time he spends with the US government starting May. The stock moved on these comments after the electric vehicle manufacturer missed Wall Street estimates for the ongoing quarter.
“I’ll continue to spend a day or two per week on government matters or as long as the president would like me to do so and as long as it is useful.” Musk said during the post-earnings call, adding that he would continue to advocate for lower tariffs.
Tesla's results for the first quarter were an all-round miss as the company's revenue declined by 9% below the $20 billion mark to $19.34 billion. The figure was below the $21.11 billion average estimate of analysts tracking the stock.
The company's Earnings Per Share (EPS), at $0.27, was also well below street expectations of $0.39. Its net profit fell over 71% from last year to just over $400 million during the quarter.
In a move that could have disappointed the street further, Tesla refused to promise growth this year and said that it will be revisiting its guidance for 2025 during its second quarter update.
Musk, as a “special government employee,” can only work 130 days in any calendar year, and Trump has begun to speculate that the billionaire entrepreneur could soon move on from his work at DOGE.
“I think Elon’s great, but he also has a company to run, or a number of companies to run,” Trump told reporters earlier this month. “We’re in no rush, but there will be a point in which time Elon’s going to have to leave.”
In its shareholder deck, Tesla cautioned investors that “uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly evolving trade policy adversely impacts the global supply chain and cost structure of Tesla and our peers.”
Shares of Tesla are up 5% in extended trading, having closed Tuesday's regular trading session 4.6% higher at $237.97. The stock, before Tuesday's trade, had already declined 41% this year.
(With Inputs From Agencies.)
