Tesla Surpasses Revenue Estimates Amidst Model 3 Buzz

Tesla has reported second-quarter results and they have topped analysts estimates.

Tesla earned $2.79 billion in revenue in Q2—slightly higher than the expected $2.51 billion—and reported an adjusted loss of $1.33 per share, not quite the earnings plunge to $1.82 per share that analysts predicted.

Although revenue nearly doubled year-over-year, Tesla reported no change in revenue between the first and second quarters of 2017. The company delivered 22,026 Model S and Model X vehicles in Q2—up 53 per cent compared to the same period last year.

In after-hours trading, Tesla’s stock climbed 6.6 per cent to $347 US.

Tesla’s second quarter focused heavily on the production and delivery of their most affordable make, the Model 3. Since the first batch of keys to Tesla’s mass-market electric car were handed over last Friday, the company reports that they’re averaging over 1,800 new reservations per day.

The response to the Model 3 has the company feeling optimistic about their other models as orders for Tesla’s Model S have increased since the handover event.

“This growing demand gives us even more reason to expect increased deliveries of Model S and Model X in the second half of this year,” Tesla said in their second-quarter update.

The buzz for the Model 3 has only continued to build as the first reviews roll in.

The Model 3 Delivers on the Hype

Autopilot and unlocking via Bluetooth are just two features that push the Model 3 into the future. After Bloomberg’s Tom Randall took the car for a spin, he reported Tesla’s newest sedan “changes everything.”

“The minute you approach the Model 3, you realize you’re in for a new sort of car experience,” he wrote. “… BMW and Mercedes should be concerned.”

Priced at $35,000, the car ramps from zero to 60 mph in 5.6 seconds—faster than the BMW 320i Sedan and the Mercedes-Benz C300— and travels 220 miles on a single charge.

For $9,000 more, drivers can upgrade to the long-range battery which shaves off half a second when accelerating to 60 mph, adds an additional 90 miles per charge, and offers the best value for price-per-mile when compared to competing sedans. 

Kim Reynolds of Motor Trend went so far to describe the Model 3 as “magic” and called the electric sedan the most important vehicle of the century, adding “the hyperbole is necessary.”

Since pre-orders opened in early 2016, half a million Model 3s have been reserved. While Tesla is ramping up production, Musk has shared that new orders will likely not receive their Model 3 until late 2018, a cause for some concern.

Earlier this week, Musk took to Twitter to share his appreciation for the overwhelming praise the car had received in reviews, saying the company poured their heart into the Model 3. He also gave his Instagram followers a look at the car’s interior.

Model 3 Interior

A post shared by Elon Musk (@elonmusk) on

It’s been far from smooth sailing for Tesla; the Model 3 was both highly anticipated and much delayed. The CEO got personal on social media last week, admitting that “unrelenting stress” is part of his job. This admission came shortly after the valuation for Musk’s SpaceX soared to $21 billion and the day before the Model 3 handover event.