The analysis argues Tesla missed an EV 'iPhone moment': it had 79% of US electric car sales in 2020, but deliveries slid from 1.81 million in 2023 to 1.79 million in 2024 and 1.64 million in 2025. A roughly $25,000 model was shelved in April 2024, and the cheaper versions launched in October 2025 cost $37,000 to $40,000, with 98% of last quarter's 486,532 deliveries still Model 3 or Model Y. Tesla's 1.74 million active FSD subscriptions in Q3 2026 equal fewer than 1 in 170 of America's roughly 298 million registered vehicles. The article also cites BYD's 2.26 million EV sales last year, the end of the $7,500 US tax credit in September 2025, and a buyer backlash over Musk's politics. Tesla still sells 54% of America's electric cars, the article notes.
Summary written by Upside AI from the original article. Read the source for full details.
Read the original on Yahoo Finance ↗
Keywords
TSLAelectric vehiclesElon MuskBYD
Open a keyword to see other news on the same topic.
Related tickers and likely impact
TSLA
▼ Likely negativeTesla, Inc.
Relevance: low
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | Consumer Discretionary |
| Industry | Automobile Manufacturers |
| Market cap | $1.5T |
| Close on 10/28/2026 | 404.41 |
| Change that session | -0.75% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- Elon Musk Sees ‘Almost All Cars’ Going Electric as Gasoline-Only Vehicles Fall Below Half of Global Sales
Tesla CEO Elon Musk expressed optimism that almost all future cars will be electric, after gasoline-only vehicles fell below 50% of global new-vehicle sales for the first time. According to Mobility Global data reported by Nikkei, pure gasoline cars made up 49% of sales from January to June 2026, down 3 percentage points, while EVs accounted for 17%; gasoline-only share had been 73% in 2021. Mobility Global forecasts EVs will exceed 30% of total vehicle production by 2030, overtaking hybrids and conventional engine vehicles. On Kalshi, bettors price a 45% chance that EVs top 30% market share by 2030 and a 24% chance they account for half of car sales. BYD surpassed Tesla as the world's largest EV maker for full-year 2025, though the two trade the quarterly top spot back and forth.
- Can Tesla Sustain China EV Sales Growth Amid Competition?
Tesla's September 2026 shipments of China-built Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, including exports, rose 5% year over year to 95,366 units, extending its growth streak to 11 months, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Shanghai-built EV sales rose 13.7% in the third quarter, though Tesla's global deliveries fell 2.1% from a record 2025 quarter. Tesla ranked sixth among China's new energy vehicle makers, behind BYD with 233,943 units, and is offering final payment discounts through October of 7,000 yuan on selected Model Y variants and 5,000 yuan on Model 3, which may weigh on margins. Rivals are also growing: NIO delivered 37,408 vehicles, up 7.7%, while BYD sold 463,561 new energy vehicles, up 17%, with exports up 153.9%.
- Rushed to market without full testing, Chinese cars are reined in by regulators
China's regulator has issued a draft tightening control over innovative vehicle design and test validation, after some automakers rushed out new products with incomplete testing. Hà Chí Kỳ, executive deputy general manager of BYD, said the domestic market received 542 new models in the first five months of 2026, an average of 3.6 per day. The draft requires reliability testing of at least 30,000 km and environmental adaptation cycles of no less than one year covering two winters and a summer, and bans fully hidden door handles, foldable and flexible screens, and seats that convert to beds while the car is moving. Products that are not declared as required or are insufficiently validated will not be approved. Public comments are open until 10 November 2026, with the rules expected to take effect on 1 January 2027 for new products, while existing models in the catalogue must submit supplementary filings before 1 July 2027.
- BYD or Tesla: Which Is a Better Stock?
The article compares BYD, which is expanding its proven EV manufacturing model overseas, with Tesla, which is shifting toward robotaxis, robots, energy storage and AI. BYD's overseas revenue reached RMB181.3 billion in the first half of 2026, about 53% of total revenue, and its August overseas shipments rose 134.5% while domestic sales fell 14.3%. Yet its first-half revenue fell 7.1% and net profit dropped 20.5%. Tesla's car business still produced 73% of its $28.2 billion Q2 2026 revenue, but it plans more than $25 billion of capex this year, and its price-to-sales ratio of 12.4 compares with BYD's 1.3. The author concludes there is no simple answer: BYD suits investors who prioritise current earnings and valuation, while Tesla suits those willing to pay for transformational new businesses.
- Musk's Massive Marketing Miss Cost $10 Trillion
The article argues Tesla has missed a major marketing opportunity by not offering families with children a free 30-minute FSD ride, even though the author sees FSD as central to Tesla's value. Citing Tesla's own figures (not an independent audit), FSD-equipped cars go about 6.0 million miles between major collisions versus the U.S. average of one every 660,000 miles, and Tesla reports 1.74 million active FSD subscriptions worldwide. Tesla earlier launched 'Tesla Ride', but it is limited to some U.S. areas, requires living near a Tesla store, and requires the driver to be 21 or older. The author concludes that demand for FSD experiences already exists, yet Tesla has not promoted the offer widely.
- Tesla's Free Cash Flow Beat: Good News, Bad News, and What It Means for the Future
Tesla lowered its 2026 capital spending forecast to about $20 billion and arranged $30 billion in credit. In the third quarter, the company generated $1.5 billion in free cash flow on $4.7 billion of capital expenditure, compared with the $3.8 billion cash outflow Wall Street had expected, and now holds almost $36 billion in net cash. The author suggests the delayed spending may be linked mainly to Optimus, as Elon Musk said early production in Fremont would probably take at least a year, maybe longer, to reach 20,000 units a week. According to the article, the disciplined spending, the credit line and positive cash flow show Tesla can fund its expansion, including the Robotaxi and Cybercab ramp next year, even if Optimus timelines have slipped.
Related markets
Latest news
- Polygon Extends Its Stablecoin Payments Infrastructure to Solana
Polygon Labs is bringing its Open Money Stack, a bundle of stablecoin payment tools, to Solana for the first time, giving businesses a single connection to fund payments from bank accounts, move crypto across chains and pay out to customers and suppliers. The company says this addresses the complexity of crypto payments, where funding, conversion and bank payouts usually require several separate providers. Solana businesses can connect bank, card, cash and crypto funding routes, create embedded wallets, and route funds across Polygon, Ethereum and Tron. Cross-border payments firm Kira is among the first to adopt the stack on Solana. Per the Solana Foundation, the network has processed more than $5 trillion in stablecoin volume this year, and the expansion extends Polygon's broader payments push, including its acquisition of Coinme.
- Justin Sun's HTX Agrees to Leave UK in Settlement With Financial Watchdog
The FCA has settled its High Court case against HTX, with the exchange undertaking not to target or solicit UK consumers, and Huobi Global S.A. agreeing not to communicate financial promotions in breach of UK law across HTX's website, apps and social media. HTX has stopped UK deposits and new sign-ups, and existing UK users have 48 hours to withdraw assets before their accounts are closed. The settlement terms are confidential and do not amount to an admission of liability or wrongdoing. The case, begun in October 2025, was the FCA's first against a crypto firm under UK financial promotion rules. Separately, the UK sanctioned Huobi Global S.A. in May over alleged support for Russia's financial sector, and the EU later named it in its 21st Russia sanctions package.
- Why Google faces a potential $400 billion market-value hit
Alphabet shares fell more than 10% in pre-market trading after its third-quarter earnings missed Wall Street estimates, a drop that could be one of the biggest market-value declines ever given the company's roughly $4 trillion valuation. A 10% decline would equal about $400 billion in value. Advertising revenue and YouTube both missed expectations, and EPS was hit by a paper loss on its SpaceX investment. Capex for the quarter was $51.36 billion, below the $55.09 billion estimate, yet Alphabet kept its 2026 capex guidance and projects $300 billion for 2027. Pepperstone's Chris Weston said the market is questioning how much investors should pay for Alphabet's AI opportunity, given the substantial cash flow costs of building it.
- Alphabet Lost About $450 Billion After Hours Even as Google Cloud Doubled
Alphabet lost an estimated $390–396 billion in value after hours on October 28, 2026, even as Google Cloud revenue rose 103% to $30.709 billion in the third quarter and Cloud profit roughly tripled. Diluted EPS of $2.12 fell short of the roughly $3.01 consensus, as an $8.7 billion loss on equity securities cut EPS by $0.55, a non-cash revaluation. Capex rose to $51.355 billion from $23.953 billion, pushing free cash flow to negative $9.065 billion, though Alphabet kept its 2026 capex guidance of $195–205 billion. Google Cloud's backlog reached $561 billion, and about 55% of it is expected to convert to revenue within two years.
- Should You Buy Tesla Stock Right Now? The Answer Might Surprise You.
Tesla delivered 838,149 EVs in the first half of 2026, up 16% year over year, but third-quarter deliveries of 486,532 fell 2%, though they beat the 461,974 Wall Street average forecast. Sales slipped even though Tesla cut prices in the third quarter, amid competition from low-cost brands such as BYD and Geely. GAAP EPS fell 44% in the third quarter, and trailing 12-month EPS of $0.91 is down 79% over two years. With a P/E of 434, against 29.5 for the Nasdaq-100, the author sees more downside possible in the near term and does not consider Tesla stock a buy right now. Musk is shifting resources to the Optimus robot, which he says will not be ready for customers until the end of 2027, and to the Cybercab robotaxi.
- Satya Nadella Says Renting AI Capacity to a Few Big Customers Is “Not a Business”
In its October 28, 2026 earnings call, Satya Nadella said serving about 4 large customers that buy heavy capacity, even with several quarters of growth, is “not a business” as far as he is concerned. Microsoft reported revenue of $92.3 billion, up 19%, with Azure up 48%, and shares rose 2.90% to $546.39 after hours. Nadella said Microsoft is open to selling capacity to large buyers “as long as the pricing is right,” while favoring enterprise customers running recurring workflows. Capex of $45.2 billion came in below Amy Hood's guidance of over $50 billion because some third-party capacity deliveries were delayed, while demand still exceeded supply. Commercial remaining performance obligation rose 73% to $677 billion, and OpenAI contributed $10.0 billion, about 10.8% of revenue.
Get the briefing on Telegram or Zalo
Join the Upside Telegram channel or Zalo group for the Vietnam stocks and gold briefing at 8:00 and 19:00 (Vietnam time) on trading days, plus a weekly wrap on Saturday morning.