Tesla (TSLA) Misses Q4 EPS, Sales Beat

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) reported Q4 EPS of ($0.64), $0.21 worse than the analyst estimate of ($0.43). Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.28 billion versus the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion.

OUTLOOK

We are excited about 2017, as we expect to see significant advances across our transport, energy generation and storage product lines. Most notably, the Model 3 and solar roof launches are on track for the second half of the year. However, since even a coupleweek shift in timing could have a meaningful impact on total deliveries and installs, we are focusing our guidance on the first half of the year.

We expect to deliver 47,000 to 50,000 Model S and Model X vehicles combined in the first half of 2017, representing vehicle delivery growth of 61% to 71% compared with the same period last year. In addition, both GAAP and non-GAAP automotive gross margin should recover in Q1 to Q3 2016 levels and then continue to expand in Q2 2017.

As for our energy generation and storage business, we plan to prioritize profitability and cash preservation over total MW deployed ahead of the solar roof launch. We are on track to generate $500M in cash (including growth of non-recourse project financing) by 2019 and achieve the cost synergies we committed to upon acquiring SolarCity. Specifically, we plan to reduce customer acquisition costs by cutting advertising spending, selling solar products in Tesla stores, and shifting away from leasing solar systems.

We expect to invest between $2 billion and $2.5 billion in capital expenditures ahead of the start of Model 3 production. We continue to focus on capital efficiency while also investing in battery cell, pack and energy storage production at Gigafactory 1.

Tesla continues to execute against its mission of accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy, and we look forward to hitting the 2017 milestones that are critical to our long-term plan.

For earnings history and earnings-related data on Tesla (TSLA) click here.

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