Tesla Reports Record Q3 Earnings — RIP, Burning Shorts
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Tesla announced its third-quarter 2021 earnings, and at the risk of sounding like a broken record, another record was broken. Tesla had $1.3 billion of operating cash flow for Q3. Tesla also paid its debts, as Elon Musk recently replied in response to one of our articles. That amount was a total of $1.5 billion this quarter.
Tesla always pays its debts
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 5, 2021
Tesla stated that it had achieved its best-ever net income, operating profit, and gross profit while also reaching an operating margin of 14.6%. This exceeded its medium-term guidance of “operating margin in low-teens.” The company added that this level of profitability was achieved while its ASP2 decreased 6% year over year in Q3. That was due to the continued mix shift toward lower-priced vehicles.
Tesla also noted that EV demand is going through a structural shift and that the more vehicles it has on the road, then the more Tesla owners are out there sharing their positive experiences owning an EV. Some challenges that Tesla addressed in the quarterly update deck included semiconductor shortages, congestion at ports, and rolling blackouts (in China).
“We believe our supply chain, engineering and production teams have been dealing with these global challenges with ingenuity, agility and flexibility that is unparalleled in the automotive industry. We would like to thank everyone who helps advance our mission.”
Tesla added that it plans to grow its manufacturing capacity as fast as possible and expects to achieve 50% average annual growth in vehicle deliveries over a multi-year horizon. It has enough cash to fund its product roadmap, long-term capacity expansion plans, and other expenses and expects its operating margin to continue to grow over time, reaching industry-leading levels.
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