Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has had a turbulent week, and it isn’t over yet. While TSLA stock is currently in the green, it is already down from its early morning rally. Yesterday saw shares plunge 9% as recession fears spurred a massive tech stock selloff.
TSLA isn’t the only high-growth tech stock being pushed down by bearish energy, but it suffered worse declines than most of its peers yesterday. A recession seems to be looming and many investors are maneuvering t0 sell off their most volatile holdings to avoid further losses.
On top of it all, Elon Musk seems to be moving forward with his plans to acquire Twitter (NYSE:TWTR). He recently held a town hall meeting with the social media company, but did not provide any information on layoffs or the deal’s further progression. This news didn’t help TSLA stock, nor did the projected declines in electric vehicle (EV) sales for the coming year.
But even as Tesla lays off employees, the stock is working hard to start making up the ground it recently lost. Let’s take a look at this week’s top headlines that Tesla investors should be reading.
Top Headlines for TSLA Stock Investors
1. Musk takes heat from Twitter employees at town hall
Twitter employees doubtless had plenty of questions for the man who may become their new CEO. But Musk arrived at the recent town hall meeting ten minutes late. He stuck to his narrative that in-person work is better for the company despite video conferencing in for the town hall. While he discussed alien life, he did not provide any context on his pending acquisition or what it could mean for Twitter’s workforce. “If Musk had anything new to tell the world about his plans,” Axios reports, “he didn’t choose to share it with his future employees.”
2. Tesla (TSLA) lays off more employees, and hourly ones this time despite Elon Musk’s comments
Meanwhile at Tesla, things aren’t much better for workers. Musk announced that the company would be laying off 10% of its workforce weeks ago. Despite him later walking back this statement, Tesla has officially begun laying off workers again. This time around, it includes hourly workers as opposed to salaried employees first identified by Musk as targets. He promised that its “hourly headcount will increase” but as of now, it is only decreasing.
3. Tesla, Lucid, and NIO Stock Fall. Analysts Are Worried About EV Sales.
EV demand has been rising steadily throughout 2022, but some analysts are worried this trend won’t continue. A team at Jefferies recently lowered its global estimates for EV sales for both this year and the next. As Barron’s reports, “the reduced forecast reflects a ‘slower-than-expected market recovery’ across the U.S., European Union, and China.” This is bad news for other EV producers, such as Lucid (NASDAQ:LCID) and Nio (NYSE:NIO), but as the global EV leader, Tesla has the most to lose.
4. Tesla increases prices amid rising supply costs
For the second time this year, Tesla is increasing EV prices. The cost of a Model Y Long Range has jumped from $62,990 to $65,990. Model S Teslas are now priced at $109,490, a noticeable increase from the previous $104,490. With inflationary trends continuing to dominate markets and supply chain constraints worsening, this news doesn’t seem to have surprised experts. A few months ago, Musk tweeted that both Tesla and SpaceX were feeling the pain of rising costs. It seems to have only gotten worse.
5. Tesla is considering sites for new factory in Canada and Mexico, along with the US
This week has brought some good news, though. Despite the inflation and supply chain constraints, Tesla is considering expanding even further. Electrek reports Musk recently updated Tesla employees on these expansion plans. “We are looking at sites, but we are considering some sites options more broadly in North America, so including Canada and Mexico, and the US as well,” he stated. However, Musk also noted that the company’s priority is increasing production at the Texas gigafactory.
On the date of publication, Samuel O’Brient did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
