Tesla cruises past profit expectations, tips new model and Cybertruck are on the way
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Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) poked out a gain in after-hours trading after topping EPS estimates and issuing production guidance for 2023 of around 1.8M vehicles.
The Austin-based company generated $12.6B in GAAP net income during the quarter and $14.1B in non-GAAP net income.
The electric vehicle powerhouse reported it produced 439,701 vehicles overall in Q4 and delivered 405,278 vehicles. For the full year, Tesla produced 1,369,611 vehicles (+47% year-over-year) and delivered 1,313,851 vehicles (+40% Y/Y).
Operating margin came in at 16.0% of sales to fall from last quarter's mark of 17.2%. Higher raw material costs and a negative FX impact were not fully offset by higher pricing early in the quarter and leverage from deliveries growth. Automotive gross margin excluding regulatory credits was 28.5% vs. 30.6% a year ago and 27.9% in the prior quarter. The margin mark missed the consensus expectation of analysts of 28.4%.
As expected, Tesla (TSLA) pointed to the inflationary impact on its cost structure and said it plans to accelerate cost savings.
Looking ahead, hardware-related profits are expected to be accompanied with an acceleration of software-related profits.
Tesla (TSLA) said the the Model Y line in Berlin produced over 3K vehicles a week near the end of the quarter. Shanghai was said to be running at near full capacity. Cybertruck remains on track to see production start later in the year from the Austin Gigafactory. The company plans to share details on its next generation vehicle at its Investor Day on March 1.
Tesla (TSLA) ended the quarter with a cash position of $22.4B, driven by free cash flow of $1.4B, partially offset by debt repayments of $497M.
Shares of Tesla (TSLA) added 0.35% in after-hours trading to $144.94 after gaining 0.38% during the regular session. The 52-week high for Tesla is $384.29.
The TSLA conference call is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET and could feature more color on the production timeline, demand trends, and the implications of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Sector peers in after-hours trading: Lucid Motors (LCID) -0.23%, Fisker (FSR) -0.13%, Rivian Automotive (RIVN) -0.27%, General Motors (GM) -0.19%, Ford (F) -0.23%.
Read the latest breakdowns on Tesla from Seeking Alpha authors.