Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Downgraded by Phillip Securities to Strong Sell

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) was downgraded by analysts at Phillip Securities from a “moderate sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on TSLA. Barclays boosted their price target on Tesla from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Tesla from $265.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Tesla from $153.00 to $156.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Tesla from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Tesla from $254.00 to $278.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Tesla has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $228.24.

Tesla Stock Performance

Shares of Tesla stock opened at $311.18 on Wednesday. Tesla has a 1 year low of $138.80 and a 1 year high of $358.64. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $248.48 and its 200 day moving average is $218.94. The stock has a market cap of $998.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.25, a PEG ratio of 10.73 and a beta of 2.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.84 and a quick ratio of 1.37.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $25.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.47 billion. Tesla had a net margin of 13.07% and a return on equity of 10.24%. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Tesla will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Tesla

In other Tesla news, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 100,000 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.02, for a total value of $34,602,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,508. The trade was a 94.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $1,400,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 105,032 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,761,200. This represents a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 188,797 shares of company stock worth $57,616,781. Insiders own 20.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Tesla

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in Tesla in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Tesla in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tesla by 168.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Tesla during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Clean Yield Group grew its position in Tesla by 60.0% in the 3rd quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 128 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Tesla Company Profile

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.