Seven of the 10 big moves were declines. Can the electric-car maker's next report break the pattern?
Seven of the 10 big moves were declines.
Can the electric-car maker's next report break the pattern?
Tesla (TSLA -2.13%) will post its third-quarter numbers after the market close on Wednesday, Oct. 21. And if the past few years are any guide, shareholders could see a big move the next day.
Since the start of 2023, the electric-car maker has put out 15 quarterly reports. Measured from the close on report day to the close a trading day later, the stock moved 8% or more after 10 of them.
The average move, up or down, was about 9%. With shares trading around $368 as of this writing, a 9% move would be about $33 a share.
The moves have tilted one way, too. Tesla stock dropped after nine of the 15 reports, including each of the past three.
Big moves, mainly down
After an 11% pop following its January 2023 report, shares dropped between 9% and 10% after each of the next three.
Showing what Tesla's price cuts in early 2023 did to its profitability, the company's operating margin narrowed from 16% in the fourth quarter of 2022 to 11.4% three months later. It then kept dropping to 9.6% the next quarter and 7.6% the quarter after that. Each report showed a lower margin than the one before it. And each pushed shares down around 9% or more.
Then 2024 swung both ways: down 12% after the January report, up 12% in April, down 12% in July, and up 22% in October -- the largest move of the whole stretch.
Averytin News Financial update.