TSLA: Tesla Stock Jumps as Bitcoin Gain Lifts Bottom Line, Musk Touts Cybercabs

Tesla shares rose despite the company’s disappointing sales. Thankfully, crypto came to the rescue.

🚗 Tesla Revenue Barely Up for the Year

• Tesla stock TSLA drove up by 4% in after hours following the EV maker’s fourth-quarter earnings results. It wasn’t a blockbuster trimester for Elon Musk’s company — Tesla picked up revenue of $25.71 billion, up just 2% from last year and below analysts’ estimates.
• Earnings per share also slipped under consensus calls with 73 cents a pop, against 76 cents expected. Operating income fell 23% to $1.6 billion. Net income plummeted 71% to $2.32 billion.

🌕 Bitcoin Holdings Buoy Bottom Line

• One thing, however, stood out in the earnings report and that’s the recent crypto bull run reflected in Tesla’s balance sheet. Tesla’s net income got a boost by a recent rule change in the way companies account for their digital assets.
• “Net income in Q4 was impacted by a $600 million mark-to-market benefit from bitcoin due to the adoption of a new accounting standard for digital assets,” Tesla said.

🍾 Epic, Ridiculous Times Ahead?

• Elon Musk struck an optimistic note in the call with investors and promised that 2025 will bring fresh growth thanks to the adoption of artificial intelligence in Tesla’s cars. Within six months, Musk said, there will be driverless cars roaming around Austin, Texas, where Tesla resides.
• “We made many critical investments in 2024 in manufacturing, AI and robotics that will bear immense fruit in the future . . . to such a scale that it is difficult to comprehend,” Musk said. “We’re building the manufacturing lines, setting up for what I think will be an epic 2026 and a ridiculous ’27 and ’28.”