Tesla rises ahead of Q2 deliveries report
FILE PHOTO: The Tesla factory is seen in Fremont, California, U.S. June 22, 2018. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photo
(Reuters) - Shares of Tesla gained nearly 6% on Monday, after a key Wall Street brokerage added the stock to its watch list ahead of the automaker's quarterly production and delivery report on Tuesday.
At $209.38, Tesla could add $36.68 billion to its market value if the price holds, which would mark the fifth straight session of stock gains.
A slump in demand for electric vehicles and competition from Chinese rivals such as BYD has pressured Tesla to slash prices on some of its models and bet its prospects on autonomous driving technologies and the robotaxis.
On Monday, Wells Fargo added Tesla to its "Tactical Ideas" list, a quarterly compilation of stocks the brokerage thinks may have meaningful upside in the near term, however it kept an "underweight" rating.
"Few levers remain to increase volumes outside of pricing & model refreshes" while the previous price cuts and promotions seem to have had a "diminished" effect on sales, lead analyst Colin M. Langan said.
Tesla is expected to report 6% lower vehicle deliveries in the April to June period, compared to the year-ago quarter, according to analysts' estimates from LSEG.
The company said in January it expects "notably lower" growth in deliveries this year, and in its latest annual impact report, published in May, dropped its goal of delivering 20 million vehicles a year by 2030.
Tesla stock fell 20.4% in the first half of the year, compared to a 14.5% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index.
Still, about two-fifths of the analysts have a "buy" or higher rating on Tesla, and another two-fifths have "hold", with a median target price of $180.
(Reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)