Tesla's record deliveries come with a sharp margin warning
Signal21 Editorial Desk
Tesla reported 480,126 second-quarter deliveries and $28.2 billion of revenue, both
substantially above the previous year. Energy and services also grew, while Robotaxi expanded
into additional US cities.
Profitability told a weaker story. Operating income fell 57% to $398 million, operating
margin declined to 1.4%, and $5.8 billion of capital expenditure pushed free cash flow to
negative $1.1 billion.
The short-term view is Bearish Bias because investment is rising faster than operating
profit. Medium term is Neutral Range; long term is Bullish Bias if Robotaxi, energy
storage and new capacity produce acceptable returns.
What would change the view
Rising operating margin alongside positive free cash flow would improve the medium view.
Continued capital-spending growth without operating leverage would weaken the long outlook.