Tesla’s first quarter deliveries declined for the first time in nearly four years, falling short of Wall Street estimates. The declines came despite EV sales rising for competing automakers during the same period.
Tesla blamed the fall in deliveries on a variety of issues, including the arson attack at its Gigafactory Berlin.
The EV maker produced 433,371 vehicles and delivered 386,810 vehicles. The deliveries were down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predicted delivery totals ranging from 449,080 to 454,200 vehicles.
“Decline in volumes was partially due to the early phase of the production ramp of the updated Model 3 at our Fremont factory and factory shutdowns resulting from shipping diversions caused by the Red Sea conflict and an arson attack at Gigafactory Berlin,” Tesla noted on its website.
A Tesla problem
Rivian will close its Illinois plant for several weeks during the second quarter to focus on upgrades.
While the automaker pointed to specific problems, analysts were quick to note deliveries were “soft,” coming in about 46,000 short of last year’s Q1 results. This is in a market where EVs are still selling well.
“While we were anticipating a bad 1Q, this was an unmitigated disaster 1Q that is hard to explain away,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a note shortly after the report’s release.
“We view this as a seminal moment in the Tesla story for Musk to either turn this around and reverse the black eye 1Q performance. Otherwise, some darker days could clearly be ahead that could disrupt the long-term Tesla narrative.”
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Others beating estimates
Rivian delivered 13,588 vehicles, which beat analysts estimates of 12,415 units, according to Visible Alpha. The company produced 13,980 electric pickups and SUVs.
Kia’s EV sales were up 151% during the first quarter of this year.
Production and delivery results during the first quarter of 2024 were in line with Rivian’s expectations. The company reaffirmed guidance for annual production of 57,000 total vehicles for 2024. The company still plans a lengthy shutdown during the second quarter to make upgrades to its production line.
Even though it beat expectations and reaffirmed production guidance, the company still concerns some analysts.
“Even though Rivian exceeded first-quarter estimates, the outlook over the next couple of years may not have enough growth, especially since the company is yet to turn a profit,” said Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital.
Hyundai saw a substantial jump in demand for its electric vehicles, including a 100% jump in March and a 62% leap for Q1. Toyota also scored with its first long-range EV, the bZ4X. Nissan also cut into Tesla’s shrinking market share as demand for its Ariya model grew. Even Kia, which saw a decline in overall sales, saw massive jump in EV sales of 151%.
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