With the economy embodied in the fight against high inflation rates and the stock market feeling a sense of recessionary dread, the electric vehicle (EV) industry saw a significant slowdown in demand in 2023, drawing the stocks of many of the sector’s companies even lower.
By January 2024, it appeared as though the EV bubble had burst, with companies like Lucid (NASDAQ: LCID) hitting all-time lows and even household names like Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) struggling to sell more than a single car in countries like South Korea.
February, however, brought a reprieve and saw most major firms in the industry rally, though the renewed decline in early March – at least for the U.S. companies – proved enough to shake the otherwise surprisingly bullish attitude of analysts and experts toward many names of the sector.
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Experts sharply divided on Tesla stock
While recent weeks saw one of Tesla’s bigger rivals – Lucid – significantly downgraded, analysts remain sharply divided when it comes to Elon Musk’s EV maker, per the data from the stock analysis platform TipRanks, retrieved on March 6.
Cumulatively, the 35 analysts represented on the platform consider TSLA shares to be a “hold,” though as many as 11 rate it a “buy” and five consider selling the right decision. The highest number – 19 – believe investors who own Tesla stock should hold it.
On average, experts believe TSLA shares will stand at $210.78 in one year’s time – $16.62% above the latest close – though the actual price target varies wildly between the analysts. The highest price target for the company at press time stands at $320, while the lowest is at only $23.53.
Tesla stock’s most recent ratings
It is notable that most of the recent rating adjustments have been relatively bullish. On March 5, Morgan Stanley’s (NYSE: MS) Adam Jonas reiterated a “buy” rating for the company, though he did decrease the price target to $320 from $345.
On the same day, UBS reaffirmed its neutrality when it comes to Elon Musk’s company and reiterated the target of $225 set earlier in 2024. RBC Capital, also on March 5, reiterated its bullish stance on Tesla and raised the price target from $297 to $298.
Only a single day earlier, on March 4, Bernstein reiterated its disagreement with the positive ratings, instead repeating that it considers TSLA a “sell” and setting the 12-month price target at $150.
Tesla stock price chart
Whether Tesla finds itself at $320 or $23 in the coming 12 months, the last 12 months saw it experience significant volatility and a decline of 6.74%. The fall became even bigger in 2024 and TSLA shares are 27.24% in the red since January 1.
While much of February seemingly brought a respite, the most recent performance, which saw the firm decline 9.78% over the course of the week and close 3.93% in the red at $180.74 – a low not seen since the spring of 2023 – confirms that the EV winter is not yet over.
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