Piper Sandler Said Don't Get Hung Up on Tesla's (TSLA) Weak April China Sales Numbers

Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter is agreeing with the view that Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) may have only sold 11,671 vehicles in China for April. As other analysts have pointed out, of the 25,845 units sold in China during the month, 14,174 units were exports. That said, Potter sees a silver lining.

Potter notes:

• some of the Shanghai factory was shut down for two weeks during April, with the Model Y likely impacted.
• If the plant shutdown impacted only Model Y, it probably reduced sales by 5k-7k units
• TSLA may be emphasizing exports early in the Q and China sales at quarter-end ...if so, there may be a boost in the final month of the Q (this occurred in Mar and Dec)

Overall, Potter said "don't stare too closely at these monthly numbers" as they prefer to examine Tesla's market share on a trailing 3-month basis. The analyst reiterated an Overweight rating and $1,200.00 price target.

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Tesla click here. For more ratings news on Tesla click here.

Shares of Tesla closed at $629.04 yesterday.

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