TSLA: Tesla Stock Falls 8% as Profits Get Cut in Half. Elon Musk Sees EV Maker at $5 Trillion.

Optimistic outlook by Tesla’s billionaire boss is powered by company’s vision to make the robotaxis a “giant autonomous fleet.”

• Tesla stock TSLA is on track to wipe out an 8% chunk of its market cap when regular trading kicks off on Wednesday. The world’s largest maker of electric cars reported underwhelming numbers for the second quarter and even a lofty valuation forecast by Elon Musk couldn’t inspire investors to line up for the company’s shares. With the fresh loss baked in, Tesla stock will sink about 10% on the year so far.
• Profitability — a key financial metric — took a big 45% hit and marked the second consecutive drop on a quarterly basis. The company earned 52 cents a share, shooting below the 61 cents expected and way below the 91 cents from a year ago. Net income was $1.47 billion, short of Wall Street’s $1.9 billion consensus view. Revenue for the June quarter rose 2% to $25.5 billion, exceeding estimates of $24.54 billion.
• Elon Musk, Tesla’s chief executive and the world’s richest person (depending on the day), said in the earnings announcement that the highly anticipated robotaxis will roll out with a two-month delay to October. The eccentric billionaire got a bit overly enthusiastic with his unofficial guidance as he claimed that Tesla’s “giant autonomous fleet” of robotaxis will crank up the company’s valuation to $5 trillion, or about six times its current worth.