Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares were up 1.8% in pre-market trading on Thursday, recovering some of the losses from the previous session after the electric vehicle maker pledged a return to growth in 2025.
The company reported fourth-quarter revenue of $25.7bn, falling short of analysts’ expectations of $27.2bn.
Full-year revenue for 2024 rose just 1% to $97.7bn, while operating income dropped 23% to $1.58bn. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $0.73, below the forecast $0.75.
Tesla attributed weaker profits to increased research and development costs, artificial intelligence investments, and lower average selling prices. Automotive revenue declined 8% in the fourth quarter, with deliveries rising 2% while production fell 7%.
The company reaffirmed plans to launch more affordable vehicles in early 2025, alongside continued development of its autonomous Cybercab. Tesla also expects capital expenditure to exceed $11bn this year and in the next two fiscal years. Shares remain down 3% year-to-date.
Ahead of the bell, stock in the EV giant was up $7.09 at $396.18, almost recouping Wednesday's 2.3% fall.
Tech analyst Dan Ives noted: "If you are bull and believer in the AI autonomous vision for Tesla this morning those investors feel even more confident in their thesis.
"For the bears/sceptics solely focused on numbers and margins with no attention to the autonomous narrative, they will also feel more confident in their negative thesis.
"Thus the Game of Thrones elongated battle continues between the bulls and bears on Tesla although we believe the autonomous/AI piece is 90% of the Tesla story today and thus speaks to our $2 trillion valuation thesis for Tesla over the coming 12 to 18 months."
The Wedbush number cruncher rates the stock a 'buy' up to $550 a share.