Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk speaks during a Tesla product launch event in Los Angeles, October 10, 2024.
Tesla | Via Reuters
Tesla published data on vehicle production and deliveries in the fourth quarter report on Thursday. Here are the key numbers:
Total deliveries Q4 2024: 495,570
Total production Q4 2024: 459,445
Total annual deliveries 2024: 1,789,226
Total annual production 2024: 1,773,443
This quarter's results reflect the first annual decline in deliveries for Tesla, which reported 1.81 million deliveries in 2023. In the fourth quarter of 2023, it reported 484,507 deliveries.
Tesla shares fell as much as 7% on Thursday.
Analysts expected Tesla to report deliveries of 504,770 vehicles in the quarter, including 474,000 Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles, according to consensus estimates compiled by StreetAccount. Tesla sent some investors the company's consensus forecast for deliveries of 506,763 vehicles, based on a survey of 26 analysts. A widely followed independent Tesla researcher, publishing as Troy Teslike, predicted deliveries of 501,000 units.
The deliveries are the closest approximation to sales reported by Tesla, but are not precisely specified in the company's announcements to shareholders.
The fourth-quarter report comes after a massive year-end rally in Tesla's stock, which finished 2024 up 63%. Shares in mid-December achieved a recordsurpassing his previous all-time record from 2021.
This was a big turnaround from the stock's first quarter dropped by 29%the worst period since 2022, when the company struggled with falling sales despite price cuts and incentives for buyers. CEO, during the company's first-quarter earnings call in April Elon Musk told investors that while it expects “higher sales this year than last year,” the growth rate will slow from 38% in 2023.
Tesla's biggest story in the second half of the year was Musk's role as president-elect Donald Trump election campaign. Musk, the world's richest man, has donated about $277 million to promote Trump and other GOP candidates and has spent weeks on the road campaigning in swing states.
Elon Musk speaks with US President-elect Donald Trump while watching the launch of the sixth test flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket in Brownsville, Texas, US, November 19, 2024.
Brandon Bell | Via Reuters
Musk, who also runs SpaceX and xAI and owns the X social network, has been tapped to co-chair a Trump administration advisory group that will aim to reduce federal spending, staff and regulations.
Sam Fiorani, vice president of industry research group Auto Forecast Solutions, told CNBC in an email that Musk's entry into politics may have “taken his attention away from his core business.” But the extent to which investors or buyers of electric vehicles care will only be reflected in Tesla's numbers in the first quarter, he said.
Until recently, Tesla was one of the few automakers mass-producing battery-electric vehicles. The company is currently facing an onslaught of competition from domestic automakers including General Motors, Ferry AND Rivian as well as BYD in China, Hyundai in Korea and European automotive giants BMW AND Volkswagen.
Patrick George, editor-in-chief of InsideEVs, told CNBC that he thinks Tesla still does many things better than any other electric vehicle maker, especially when it comes to the charging network. But Tesla's biggest operational challenge in the last quarter was “the core responsibilities of being a car company.”
“Collecting used cars in parking lots”
Tesla has invested in a humanoid robotics initiative and chip development, and plans to produce a special robotaxi and launch a driverless transportation service before 2027. While Musk and shareholders may not want to view Tesla as just a car company, most of its profits still come from vehicle sales.
George said Tesla made a mistake by not introducing “cheaper electric vehicles in 2024.” and added that Cybertrucks – the company's newest vehicle – are “piling up in used car lots.” Prices for the angular, steel Cybertruck start at around $80,000.
As competitors gained market share in Europe, Tesla saw sales in the region plummet in the fourth quarter.
Tesla sold 283,000 vehicles in Europe from January to the end of November, down about 14% from the same period a year earlier, according to registration data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA). Registrations in Europe fell to 18,786 in November from around 31,810 a year earlier.
The company's China business also came under pressure in the fourth quarter.
Fiorani said that although the Model Y is the second best-selling model in China, “its growth has not kept pace with the market growth.” He added that Model Y sales were up more than 5% through November, but overall electric vehicle sales in the country were up 8%.
Meanwhile, BYD and other brands in China, including Chery, Li Auto, Jetour, LeapMotor and Aito, grew much faster than Tesla. BYD is also opening factories outside China and has huge exports.
In North America, Tesla continues to dominate. The company offered a number of incentives and price reductionseven the most popular Model Y SUV in the fourth quarter to boost sales. Still, Tesla has experienced stockpiling.
In the fourth quarter, the company sent Cybertruck assembly line workers home for a few days, indicating it may be trying to avoid flooding the market with too many vehicles.
Looking ahead to 2025, in October during an earnings call, Musk said Tesla expected to offer cheaper and autonomous vehicles in 2025, which should lead to “20-30% growth” over 2024.
TO WATCH: By the end of 2025, China's automotive market could reach 55-60% electric vehicles
