Tesla's CFO departure doesn't mean run for the hills; China deliveries, on the other hand...
jetcityimage/iStock Editorial via Getty Images
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Chief Financial Officer Zachary Kirkhorn resigned abruptly on August 4. Bernstein advised investors they donât need to run for the hills.
âClearly Kirkhorn made a personal decision that sticking around wasnât worth it (not enough upside/already enough money? Too much Elon/work? ....or some combination of these considerations),â Bernstein analysts A.M. (Toni) Sacconaghi, Jr. and Daniel Zhu wrote in a note.
Barclays, keeping it short and sweet, said the move will likely provoke a ânegative read.â
Kirkhorn, aged 39, had been at TSLA for 13 years, the past four as CFO.
âTesla is obviously a demanding place, and Elon is tough to work for... as we have noted before, executive turnover at Tesla has historically been very high,â Bernstein said.
Shares of TSLA fell 1.2% on Tuesday morning.
EV deliveries
Meanwhile, BofA noted that China deliveries that dropped 31% in July from June âpotentially indicates that the price cuts TSLA implemented in late 2022 may have pulled forward demand rather than driving incremental volumes.â
BofA analysts led by John Murphy reiterated a Neutral rating on the stock and a price objective of $300.
âTSLA experienced several months of strong demand in China after it lowered prices in December 2022 on the Model 3 and Model Y by 13.5% and 10%, respectively, but the demand reversal in July suggests those initial gains may be temporary,â BofA said.
âMeanwhile, BYD, which is TSLAâs largest EV competitor in China, showed its 6th straight month of positive MoM growth in July, increasing 4% MoM and 60% YoY to 261,105. This seems to indicate that the drop in demand for TSLA vehicles was not driven by broader economic factors in China.â
The EV makerâs price cuts have created a ânegative price spiralâ that has already adversely impacted margins.
âWhile the price cuts helped TSLA in clearing out inventory at the end of 2022 and spurred demand in China through 1H, those benefits appear to have been short-lived.â
TSLA is up 132% so far this year and down 18% over the past 12 months.
More on Tesla:

 Tesla CFO steps down after 13 years at the company; shares fall
Tesla's China deliveries fell to a 2023 low in July
Tesla: My 13 Point Countdown