Wedbush dubbed Elon Musk’s unannounced visit to China “a major moment” for Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and “a key moment” for Musk at a time when Tesla faces unprecedented competition from domestic Chinese EV manufacturers.
Musk met with Premier Li Qiang in Beijing on Sunday and has received tentative approval from government officials to deploy full self-driving (FSD) technology in the country.
Tesla intends to collaborate with domestic technology company Baidu on a data-sharing arrangement.
“If Musk is able to obtain approval from Beijing to transfer data collected in China abroad this would be pivotal around the acceleration of training its algorithms for its autonomous technology globally,” said Wedbush.
“We also believe this trip will be significant for Tesla and Musk further strengthening its EV footprint within the Chinese market at a pivotal time.
“While demand challenges exist in China for Tesla, the Street is looking through this painful transition period for the long term growth story to emerge for Musk & Co. with FSD a key ingredient in that recipe for success.”
Wedbush maintains an outperform rating on Tesla stock with a $275 price target.
Shares flew 13% higher to $190.2 in Monday’s pre-market session.