Tesla Hits 11-Month Low: 'Patience Required,' Says Analyst

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA ) analysts are lowering their price targets after the company’s second-quarter results that saw earnings per share miss estimates and guidance for spending come in significantly higher moving forward.

The Tesla Analysts Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Andres Sheppard maintained an Overweight rating on Tesla stock and lowered the price target from $510 to $485.

Morgan Stanley analyst Andrew Percoco maintained an Equal-Weight rating and lowered the price target from $417 to $400.

Needham analyst Chris Pierce maintained a Hold rating with no price target.

Read Also: QUICK SPARK: Elon Musk Turns Tesla FSD Fight in France Into a Life-Or-Death Warning Cantor Fitzgerald on Tesla Stock Sheppard highlighted progress made by Tesla in FSD customer subscribers and additional approvals in European territories in a new investor note.

The analyst also highlighted Tesla having Supervised FSD available in China and several other countries. "China’s rollout comes after a prolonged approval process, which we view as material and as an opportunity for TSLA to recapture EV market share in the region," Sheppard said.

Sheppard calls additional FSD approvals in Europe an "underappreciated growth area for the company." The analyst also highlighted progress made by Tesla for robotaxis in select cities and the start of production for the Cybercab. "Overall, we continue to see Tesla’s Robotaxi segment and Cybercab as a software-as-a-service, high-margin model." Sheppard sees fiscal 2026 as a transformational year for Tesla in autonomy, AI, robotics and chips. "We remain bullish on TSLA at current levels with the stock down ~17% YTD." Morgan Stanley on Tesla Stock Percoco says the road to return on investment for Tesla is "patience required." "We view Tesla’s accelerating capex cycle as a necessary investment to secure leadership in autonomy & robotics," Percoco said in a new investor note.

The analyst said the increased investments will require more Robotaxi & Optimus milestones to win over investors. "Nothing this quarter changes our thesis in a meaningful way.

The capex step-up is a known trend." Needham on Tesla Stock While the Autonomy Halo brightened with second-quarter results, concerns for automotive and energy are growing, Pierce said in a new investor note. "The longer term autonomy thesis took a step forward, with the promise of autonomous driving winning consumer mindshare at accelerating rates looking at FSD uptake against reiterated Cybercab and Optimus production timelines," Pierce said.

The analyst said EV demand rose with higher gas prices, but Tesla’s margins missed estimates.

Pierce said the company’s Model Y could also face "its first legitimate competition" with the launch of the R2 from Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: RIVN ).

Pierce said the production timelines for Optimus and Cybercab stayed the same, which helps the AI and robotics narrative for investors.

The analyst said Tesla is asking investors to "fund an increasingly capital intense growth strategy" as earnings power weakens. "We continue to view the risk/reward as balanced with the stock trading at ~30x our FY30E adj.

EBITDA." Tesla Stock Price Action Tesla stock is down 12.9% to $325.60 on Thursday versus a 52-week trading range of $297.82 to $498.83.

Tesla shares are down 26.8% year-to-date in 2026.

Read Also: Tesla Could 'Eventually Drop a Bomb on Waymo,' Gene Munster Says, After AI Chief Signals Statewide Robotaxi Launches Photo: mundissima / Shutterstock – ek