Tesla stock rose early Wednesday after another tweet from CEO Elon Musk, but the gains quickly evaporated as investors refocused on the company’s weakening electric-vehicle business and intensifying competitive pressures.
Tesla stock initially climbed 1.1% to $423.84 in premarket trading, while futures on the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.1%.
The stock later slipped back to flat, erasing the brief jump.
Musk tweet drives optimism
The move followed a late-Tuesday post in which Musk said Tesla’s Austin, Texas, robo-taxi fleet should “roughly double next month.”
The Tesla Robotaxi fleet in Austin should roughly double next month
The comment added to a string of Musk-driven stock reactions this week.
Over the weekend, he highlighted Tesla’s progress designing chips for AI computing, helping propel shares nearly 7% higher on Monday amid a broader market rebound.
Tesla launched its robo-taxi service in Austin in June with a limited number of vehicles and safety monitors in the passenger seat.
The company has expanded the service area since, and Musk’s latest signal of accelerated deployment initially pleased investors who increasingly view Tesla as an AI- and autonomy-driven company rather than a traditional carmaker.
Coming into Wednesday, Tesla shares were up 4% in 2025 and 24% over the past 12 months, despite declining vehicle demand and falling earnings forecasts.
EV sales and profit outlook continue to deteriorate
Tesla is expected to deliver fewer than 1.7 million vehicles in 2025, down from just over 1.8 million in 2024.
Earnings per share are projected to drop to $1.65 next year from $2.42 in 2024.
Analysts say the company’s record US deliveries in the third quarter were likely boosted by consumers rushing to secure a tax credit that expired on Sept. 30, rather than by sustained demand.
While Tesla’s long-term shareholders remain focused on the potential of AI-trained robo-taxis and humanoid robots to reshape the company’s profit profile, the near-term picture continues to worsen.
Tesla’s market share erodes in Europe
The company’s weakening EV sales have been particularly pronounced in Europe.
According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, Tesla’s sales in the region fell 48.5% in October compared with a year earlier.
Year-to-date sales are down about 30%, even as overall EV sales in Europe are up 26%, highlighting a marked loss of market share.
Competition has intensified sharply. European buyers now have more than 150 EV models to choose from, many priced below Tesla’s offerings.
Chinese automakers — led by BYD — have expanded rapidly, with BYD recently outselling Tesla in monthly European sales.
Tesla’s stock continues to trade more on the promise of future AI-driven businesses than on the fundamentals of its vehicle operations. While Musk’s remarks about chip development, autonomy and robotaxis have repeatedly boosted sentiment, the underlying EV business remains under pressure across multiple major markets.
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