Hot Stocks: TSLA, T rally on earnings; AA drops; NFLX falls further as Bill Ackman dumps stake
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Elon Musk took center stage in Thursday's pre-market trading for reasons other than his push to acquire Twitter. His Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) topped expectations with its quarterly results, sparking a rally in its stock.
AT&T (T) also benefited from the release of its financial figures, rising in the wake of better-than-expected quarterly profit. Alcoa (AA) moved in the other direction on earnings news, losing ground on disappointing revenues.
Elsewhere in the market, Netflix (NFLX) continued to fall in pre-market action, extending its post-earnings drop. As the stock continued its free fall, high-profile hedge fund manager Bill Ackman disclosed that he had dropped his holdings in the streaming video service.
Gainers
Tesla (TSLA) rose in pre-market trading after beating expectations with its latest earnings report. Despite supply chain bottlenecks and COVID-related production limitations in China, Elon Musk's EV maker easily beat expectations on its bottom line, with revenue that rose 81% from last year to reach $18.76B.
TSLA also reported an increase in automotive gross margin and said it produced more than 305K vehicles during the quarter. Bolstered by the earnings news, the stock climbed more than 7% in premarket action.
Earnings news also prompted buying interest in AT&T (T). The company issued a mixed report, beating expectations on its profit figure despite disappointing revenue.
Even with a top-line figure that fell 13% from last year, investors took heart from the firm's postpaid phone subscribers, which rose 691K during the quarter. Shares rose about 1% before the opening bell.
Decliners
Netflix (NFLX) took another step down in Thursday's pre-market trading, falling about 4%. This added to a 35% plunge that took place during the previous session, as investors fled the stock in the wake of a disastrous earnings report.
Famed investor Bill Ackman was among the shareholders who walked away from NFLX after the streaming service said it lost subscribers during the latest quarter. In a letter to investors, the Pershing Square boss revealed that the firm had dumped its sizable NFLX stake, taking a $435M loss. 
Alcoa (AA) saw weakness in pre-market trading as well. The aluminum producer exceeded projections with its adjusted earnings but its revenue figure fell short. 
The company also said aluminum production fell 9% in Q1. Based on the earnings news, shares dropped about 5% before the opening bell.

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