Tesla late this afternoon released its earnings report for the first quarter of 2017 and posted revenue of $2.7 billion and a loss of $1.33 per share. Ahead of the earnings release, analysts were anticipating Tesla to post revenue of $2.62 billion and a loss of $0.81 per share. As far as deliveries are concerned, Tesla during the first three months of 2017 shipped 25,051 vehicles to customers across the globe, representing a new quarterly record.
Notably, Tesla said that vehicle production last quarter was 64% higher than it was during the year ago quarter, a testament to Tesla’s ever improving manufacturing processes. Additionally, Tesla assured investors that Model 3 mass production remains on track and will begin in earnest in July, as originally planned.
“Model 3 vehicle development is nearly complete as we approach the start of production,” Tesla noted in a letter to shareholders. “Release Candidate vehicles built using production-intent tooling and processes are being tested to assess fit and finish, to support software development and to ensure a smooth and predictable homoglation process. Road testing is also underway to refine driving dynamics and ensure vehicle durability.”
As to the scale of Model 3 production, Tesla’s letter relays that it plans to manufacture 5,000 Model 3 units per week by late 2017. By 2018, Tesla is planning to increase its weekly output to 10,000 vehicles. More broadly, Tesla is still aiming to manufacture 500,000 cars in 2018 alone.
Tesla’s letter further adds:
As part of our Model 3 launch preparations, we are significantly expanding our infrastructure to support Tesla owners by increasing the density and geographic footprint of our presence. This year, we plan to add nearly 100 retail, delivery and service locations globally, representing an approximately 30% increase in facilities. These additions include the Q1 openings of our first stores in Dubai and South Korea. To significantly improve the customer experience with out-of-warranty body repairs, we intend to open the first Tesla-owned body repair shops later this year and expand the existing network of third-party Tesla certified body shops.
In the wake of Tesla’s earnings report, shares of the company are down nearly 9 points.
