Tesla Q2 earnings miss estimates on falling EV sales, margin pressures By Investing.com

Investing.com — Tesla reported Tuesday mixed second-quarter results as earnings fell short of estimates as weaker margins and falling EV sales weighed on performance. 

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:) fell 3% in afterhours following the report.

For Q2, the company reported adjusted per share of $0.52 on revenue of $25.5 billion, compared with with Wall Street estimates of $0.61 a share and $24.33B, respectively.

The bottom line was pressured by a fall automotive sales to $18.53B from $20.42B a year earlier and weaker-than-expected margins amid pressure from EV price cuts, restructuring charges and costs related to investment into AI projects.   

Gross margins excluding credits, a closely watched metric, fell to 14.7% in Q2 from 18.1% a year earlier, missing analysts’ estimates for 16.3%. 

Tesla delivered 443,956 EVs during the quarter, down 5% from the same period a year earlier.

The company’s energy storage business was a bright spot in the quarter, deploying 9.4 gigawatts in Q2, up 158% from a year earlier. 

Looking ahead, Tesla reiterated that vehicle volume growth rate may be notably lower than the growth rate achieved in 2023, as the company works on the launch of next generation vehicle and other products.

“Plans for new vehicles, including more affordable models, remain on track for start of production in the first half of 2025,” the company said.