Long And Bumpy Road Ahead For Tesla [View article]
exactly right. And the last time I saw a number, the total market for automobiles is like 60,000,000. 1/2 percent of that is 300,000 versus expected production of 30,000 this year (including foreign deliveries) and 50,000 in 2014, so Tesla will hardly find any resistance from any other producer. Tesla is not only outselling all EVs (nearly combined), it is outselling all luxury automobiles imported to the US combined. Obviously it won't come out this simply, but 50,000 cars sold at a $20,000 profit per car is $1B in profit, or close to $9/share.
Tesla Motors' CEO Discusses Q1 2013 Results - Earnings Call Transcript [View article]
Elon must flesh out the decision regarding reservations. Even if it is no longer relevant or maybe even misleading, you need to keep reporting the numbers. If you don't, people will think the numbers aren't good and don't compare favorably or shed good light on Tesla and that's why you have stopped reporting them. Explain why the figures aren't important or relevant, but report them anyhow.
Tesla Sparks 'Melt-Up' Fears À La Porsche And VW [View article]
Good observation about Tesla owners buying the stock. I did and have made enough to pay for my current Model S and for one of the five Model Xs I have on order.
Goldman and Deutsche are "in the lead" to handle an Apple (AAPL +3.6%) debt offering, Bloomberg reports shortly after the company filed an S-3. Apple, which last week promised to return $100B to shareholders by the end of 2015, is said to have asked Goldman/Deutsche "to arrange phone interviews with fixed-income investors today in advance of a potential deal." Much like the Facebook IPO, banks are likely to offer discounted fees to win bragging rights. (institutional interest) [View news story]
Regarding the debt financing being contemplated by the company with the least need for cash in the world, why haven't we seen a discussion as to why they are doing it? The only reason I can think of is that in order to buy shares back, they have to have domestic cash. If they bring back $60B of their foreign cash trove, they pay $15B-$20B in taxes. But if the borrow the $60B domestically, they offset the cost by using the overseas cash cache to buy bonds with similar interest rates. That don't have to repatriate the money and thus save the taxes. Anyone know why that doesn't make sense or why it wouldn't account for what otherwise seems like a stupid move?
Why Apple Rose On Samsung's Big Day [View article]
Last time I looked at the issue when we were trying to buy back stock in a corporation we controlled, you were constrained to buying no more than 10% of the average daily volume (obviously not a problem for AAPL!) and could only buy on downticks, i.e. at prices which were lower than the last different price. I don't know if those rules have changed, and I don't know that there aren't ways around that, but the rules are designed to prevent stock manipulation by management, to prevent just such a move as we saw. So my guess is that any AAPL buyback had little to do with the stock movement.
"High above the Alps my Gnome is hearing a rumor that Apple will announce a stock split at tomorrow's shareholder meeting," tweets Doug Kass. The rumor has led Apple (AAPL +1%) shares to spike higher. Update (2:24 PM):Kass is using the post-rumor spike to sell part of his trading position in Apple. [View news story]
You all just don't get Apple. They don't CARE what the market thinks, and they don't care about spending any time trying to please analyst and bloggers (not the same thing, obviously). They will continue doing what they have always done until it doesn't work anymore, and that's to follow the notion that great products sell in great numbers for great margins and, guess what, you don't have to worry about the competition because you don't really have any. Momma used to say, "stick to your knitting"!
Tesla Will Stay At The Top Of The Market For Now [View article]
400 cars a week is $2 billion in sales. margins at 25% mean $500,000,000 in gross profits, and presumably OPEX would be covered by this if it isn't already in the 25%, leaving, worst case, $100,000,000 in profits. And there is an awful lot of front loading of OPEX, too, and that should come down if productions doesn't rise above 400 per week.
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
to the contrary. And in any case, the last thing that Apple needs is more capital!!
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
I didn't see your comment before I posted mine, but we are clearly on the same page. Well stated.
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
Why would you want Apple to pay attention to "Wall Street" when clearly no one in financial services cares about how to operate a company, they only care about underwriting opportunities and financial transactions. And, yes, they care about stock price, but only to the extent it allows them to do more transactions. Remember that Apple got to where it is by NOT paying attention to "consensus" or market research. Steve Jobs, and apparently Tim Cook is following the lead, said that Apple should lead consumers, not react to their current demands. Apple is "doing its thing" in running the company as best they know how, creating products which lead the industry where they think it should be going, and to hell with what analysts/Wall Street says.
Tesla Will Stay At The Top Of The Market For Now [View article]
Do you have any handle on how Tesla participates financially in its venture with Daimler Benz for their EV or with Toyota and what they are doing? Is this likely to be even a minor profit center?
The burning question over how many Model S vehicles Tesla Motors (TSLA +0.5%) manufactured in 2012 might be answered if a parsing of the VIN numbers issued by the automaker can be trusted. According to anecdotal reports, the highest VIN number issued so far is #3383 - just above Tesla's latest guidance calling for 2,700 to 3,225 units. [View news story]
I took delivery of my Model S on the 23rd of December (it was ready several days earlier), and its VIN ends in 2746, so it would seem fairly certain that the last car delivered in 2012 would have had a VIN of between 3,000 and 3,146. When I picked up the car, I was told that they were producing over 400 cars per week.
Electric vehicle roundup: 1) The NHTSA says vehicles traveling slower than 18 mph must make an audible noise that can be detected by bicyclists and pedestrians. The agency thinks the measure will only add about $35 to manufacturing costs. 2) Year-end sales totals for Chevrolet Volt (GM) indicate the model saw sales grow 206% to 7,671 units, below some early sales targets but above dour estimates from notable EV critics. 3) Chatter on the Tesla (TSLA) Forums indicates the automaker saw a surge of activity late in Q4 which could tip off it met its quarterly production goal. [View news story]
I took delivery of my Model S Tesla just before Christmas. My reservation number was in the mid-5000 range (which does not include the Special series which got delivery first). I was told during a tour of the factory that they were up to production of over 400 a week (which you will note translates to 20,000 a year, their production goal for 2013). I was also told that reservations for the Model S were at around 17,000 even after the satisfaction of the backlog to that date. Seems to me they are on target.
Oh, yeah...THE CAR IS ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!! Even my skeptical wife was blown away. I'll never buy an internal combustion engine vehicle again for my personal use, and my Maserati Quattroporte - which the Tesla TOTALLY dusts in every way - is now on the market - cheap! I also have in reservations for five of the Model X, for my entire family!
More on Maxim's commentary on Tesla Motors (TSLA -1%) (previous): The unexpected price increase for the Model S that is now widely anticipated could be a way to "light a fire" under reservation holders who haven't plopped down their $5K deposit just yet. The firm sees bears jumping all over the development as a sign of weakness, giving opportunistic buyers a cozy entry point. So far it's working, shares of Tesla are down close to 5% since Wednesday's high. [View news story]
You couldn't GET a reservation without putting down $5,000, so this is a bogus analysis. As a reservation holder, I can verify this as fact.
Long And Bumpy Road Ahead For Tesla [View article]
Tesla Motors' CEO Discusses Q1 2013 Results - Earnings Call Transcript [View article]
Tesla Sparks 'Melt-Up' Fears À La Porsche And VW [View article]
Goldman and Deutsche are "in the lead" to handle an Apple (AAPL +3.6%) debt offering, Bloomberg reports shortly after the company filed an S-3. Apple, which last week promised to return $100B to shareholders by the end of 2015, is said to have asked Goldman/Deutsche "to arrange phone interviews with fixed-income investors today in advance of a potential deal." Much like the Facebook IPO, banks are likely to offer discounted fees to win bragging rights. (institutional interest) [View news story]
Why Apple Rose On Samsung's Big Day [View article]
"High above the Alps my Gnome is hearing a rumor that Apple will announce a stock split at tomorrow's shareholder meeting," tweets Doug Kass. The rumor has led Apple (AAPL +1%) shares to spike higher. Update (2:24 PM): Kass is using the post-rumor spike to sell part of his trading position in Apple. [View news story]
Which is to say, no stock split any time soon.
Tesla Will Stay At The Top Of The Market For Now [View article]
Tesla Will Stay At The Top Of The Market For Now [View article]
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
More on Einhorn and Apple (AAPL): The company needs to use the same level of creativity with its balance sheet as it does to produce products, writes Einhorn. Every $50B of perpetual preferred stock distributed would unlock about $32/share of value, he says, and Apple has the capacity to distribute several hundred billion. "Greenlight is alarmed that Apple is attempting to eliminate preferred stock from its corporate charter." Shares +0.7% premarket. [View news story]
Tesla Will Stay At The Top Of The Market For Now [View article]
The burning question over how many Model S vehicles Tesla Motors (TSLA +0.5%) manufactured in 2012 might be answered if a parsing of the VIN numbers issued by the automaker can be trusted. According to anecdotal reports, the highest VIN number issued so far is #3383 - just above Tesla's latest guidance calling for 2,700 to 3,225 units. [View news story]
Electric vehicle roundup: 1) The NHTSA says vehicles traveling slower than 18 mph must make an audible noise that can be detected by bicyclists and pedestrians. The agency thinks the measure will only add about $35 to manufacturing costs. 2) Year-end sales totals for Chevrolet Volt (GM) indicate the model saw sales grow 206% to 7,671 units, below some early sales targets but above dour estimates from notable EV critics. 3) Chatter on the Tesla (TSLA) Forums indicates the automaker saw a surge of activity late in Q4 which could tip off it met its quarterly production goal. [View news story]
Oh, yeah...THE CAR IS ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!! Even my skeptical wife was blown away. I'll never buy an internal combustion engine vehicle again for my personal use, and my Maserati Quattroporte - which the Tesla TOTALLY dusts in every way - is now on the market - cheap! I also have in reservations for five of the Model X, for my entire family!
Disclosure: I'm long the hell out of the stock!
More on Maxim's commentary on Tesla Motors (TSLA -1%) (previous): The unexpected price increase for the Model S that is now widely anticipated could be a way to "light a fire" under reservation holders who haven't plopped down their $5K deposit just yet. The firm sees bears jumping all over the development as a sign of weakness, giving opportunistic buyers a cozy entry point. So far it's working, shares of Tesla are down close to 5% since Wednesday's high. [View news story]