(New York) Tesla reported strong second-quarter results on Wednesday, with the electric vehicle maker raising prices and selling off most of its bitcoins to help it cope with the temporary shutdown of its factory in China, the United States. logistical challenges and inflation.
Updated yesterday at 7:20 p.m.
Net profit for Elon Musk’s company, otherwise mired in a legal battle over the takeover of Twitter, was $2.3 billion in the period, almost twice as much as in the second quarter of last year.
For the first time since the start of 2021, its profits did not rise to a new record, however. And its turnover, at 16.9 billion dollars, was also a little disappointing.
But Tesla had already indicated that its deliveries had fallen by 18% compared to the previous quarter due in particular to the closure of its Shanghai factory for several weeks, because of COVID-19.
The manufacturer must also juggle the shortage of semiconductors, which has affected the entire automotive sector since the beginning of 2021, with rising raw material prices and sometimes with a lack of personnel.
To deal with this small air pocket, Elon Musk announced in June the elimination of around 3 to 3.5% of the workforce, without touching the workers.
On Wednesday, the entrepreneur also pointed out that he sold 75% of the bitcoins held by Tesla to ensure that he had enough cash: the operation brought him $963 million. The company had created a surprise by buying $1.5 billion worth of virtual currency at the start of 2021.
“We didn’t know when the confinements in China were going to ease”, justified the boss during a conference call. This transaction should not be interpreted “as a verdict on bitcoin”, he asserted, asserting that Tesla had not sold its dogecoins, another cryptocurrency, and was not giving up buying other bitcoins.
At the same time, the group has increased the price of its vehicles, its cheapest model currently being sold in the United States at $48,840.
“They are frankly at embarrassing levels,” Musk said. But this is to reflect “the shocks in the supply chain and on production” as well as “crazy inflation”, he added, saying he hoped to be able to “reduce them a little”.
This did not prevent the gross margin of its automotive activity, a particularly observed indicator, from falling slightly.
For Garrett Nelson of CFRA, however, Tesla’s quarter as a whole was “impressive considering the challenges they faced.”
Speed up
Despite these challenges, Tesla has maintained its long-term goal of growing deliveries by an average of 50% per year, which would amount to around 1.4 million vehicles in 2022.
Already in June, production at its plants in Fremont, California, and Shanghai had returned to a record high. And the group is counting on accelerating the pace in its new factories in Berlin and Austin (Texas).
Tesla also continues to profit from the sale to other companies of the carbon credits granted to it, because its cars do not emit pollutants, earning $ 344 million in the process.
More than 100,000 Tesla drivers are now testing Tesla’s enhanced driver assistance software, FSD beta, Musk also said on Wednesday. It should be offered to all Tesla owners by the end of the year in North America and then, depending on the green light from the authorities, in Europe.
The stock rose 0.8% in Wednesday’s electronic trading following the close on Wall Street.
It is down about 30% since the start of the year, affected by the general decline in the markets, but also by investors worried about seeing Elon Musk distracted by his tribulations with Twitter.
The richest man in the world had indeed announced in April his intention to buy the social network, before giving up. Twitter having demanded that the entrepreneur honor his commitment, a trial must take place in October.