(Bloomberg) – Tesla Inc. delivered more vehicles than expected in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough for Elon Musk’s company to surpass China’s BYD in global electric vehicle sales.
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Tesla delivered 484,507 vehicles in the past three months, beating analysts’ average estimate of 483,173 vehicles. BYD sold 526,409 fully electric vehicles in the quarter, making it the new number one in EVs. This was primarily driven by a broader lineup of lower-priced models in China.
Read more: BYD beats Tesla to record quarterly sales
Although Tesla exceeded its goal of delivering 1.8 million vehicles a year, the Austin-based automaker fell well short of the upside scenario that Mr. Musk touted 12 months ago. After the chief executive told analysts the company had the potential to produce 2 million cars, a series of price cuts were unlikely to spark enough demand to support production of that number. could not.
Baird analyst Ben Caro said the Austin-based automaker could deliver more than 2.1 million vehicles in 2024, despite an uncertain outlook for overall EV demand. Our research notes predict that the price will be high.
Tesla shares pared an early drop of as much as 1.6% on Tuesday and were trading little changed at $248.43 as of 1:30 p.m. in New York. The stock soared 102% last year, bouncing back from record losses in 2022 related to Musk’s acquisition of Twitter (now known as X).
Changes in EV sales rankings reflect China’s growing influence in the global auto industry. China has surpassed the United States, South Korea, and Germany in recent years, and could overtake Japan as the world’s largest exporter of passenger cars in 2023.
Read more: Tesla loses position as world’s most popular EV maker to China’s BYD
Tesla generates more revenue and profits than BYD because it sells far more expensive vehicles and relies on just two models for the majority of its sales. Model Y sport utility vehicles and Model 3 sedans accounted for 95% of his deliveries in the fourth quarter.
Despite its strong position in its home market of China, BYD does not sell any of its vehicles in the United States, where it would face a 27.5% import tariff and other hurdles. .
“Tesla remains the dominant EV name in the U.S.,” Barclays analyst Dan Levy said in an interview on Bloomberg TV.
Musk added another model to Tesla’s lineup late last year, launching the Cybertruck years later than planned. The company did not say how many stainless steel-coated pickups it had produced and delivered by the end of the year.
The launch of the Cybertruck marked Tesla’s entry into the highly competitive U.S. truck market. Musk warned that it could take 12 to 18 months for the vehicles, which are difficult to manufacture and packed with new technology, to reach mass production and generate positive cash flow.
“We won’t sell more than 20,000 units in 2024, because the growth will be very slow,” Levy said of the Cybertruck. “It will attract some consumers who want more of a lifestyle car. But I don’t think the Cybertruck will really penetrate the core heavy-duty pickup market used for work purposes.”
Read more: Musk’s Cybertruck is already a production nightmare for Tesla
Tesla does not release quarterly car sales figures by region, but its largest markets are the United States and China. The company manufactures the Model S, X, 3, and Y in Fremont, California, and the Model 3 and Y in Shanghai. It also produces Model Ys at factories in Austin and outside Berlin.
–With assistance from Danny Lee, Ed Ludlow, and Caroline Hyde.
(Updates from fourth paragraph with analyst comment.)
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