Fast Facts
- Tesla stock has fallen 34% this year
- Many investors are angry, feeling they've been misled
- Wedbush's Dan Ives explains why there's still hope for the stock
While Elon Musk's Tesla (TSLA) has been a hot stock over the past few years, it's been on a steady decline in 2024.
Many investors who once believed in the stock have been pulling away, displeased with Musk's decisions as of late, which include several major price cuts throughout 2023 in an effort to build market share.
Related: As Tesla stock tanks, key investor explains the (lack of) value in Dojo, Optimus
Not all analysts and investors have been scared away, however. Wedbush's Dan Ives, a prominent Wall Street analyst, addressed his own bullish stance on the electric-vehicle producer in a Bloomberg interview on March 14.
Why we remain firmly in the bull camp on Tesla despite near term headwinds @bsurveillance 🐂👇 https://t.co/B9ERoUYp8V
— Dan Ives (@DivesTech) March 15, 2024
"My view on Tesla is that it's easy to get negative. ... On the other side of this, this will be a company on its way two and a half, three million units. When we look at the next few years, they will gain more share, the leverage will be there, and I believe ultimately numbers, EPS, growth, will come back up," Ives said.
"It just doesn't feel like that's where the market is right now. It feels like the market is in a space which benefits hybrids: Toyota, GM starting to lean in that direction. Think about it. Ford's already there. Tesla doesn't feel like it's in the sweet spot. What's gonna change your mind?" co-anchor Jonathan Ferro asked Ives.
"The problem now is that numbers are coming down, It's a sluggish 1Q. So in the near term it is easy to be negative about this. Our view is we've been here before. Many times we've been in these white-knuckle periods — to me, this is not the end of the growth story. I believe this is a growth story with [artificial intelligence, Full-Self-Driving] that's still gonna have a significant piece on the horizon," Ives said.
Ferro challenged Ives's stance, saying, "Then you know why they're upset because if I'm a client, this stock is down by something like 30% YTD and you've had a buy on it the whole way down. That's why they're upset."
Related: There's a dirty secret about Tesla Elon Musk doesn't want you to know
Ives was unruffled by the comment, saying, "In my career — in 25 years — our calls have been, when things got the worst, whether it was Apple, Tesla, Amazon, Apple — when things got the worst, you handheld through those periods ... on to the other side. It is easy to yell fire in a crowded theater when you're going through this period," Ives said.
