Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stock Price Down 0.3% on Insider Selling

Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s stock price fell 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $267.71 and last traded at $271.18. 35,247,910 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average session volume of 80,167,531 shares. The stock had previously closed at $272.04.

Specifically, CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.02, for a total transaction of $1,776,120.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,833,325.68. The trade was a 20.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 112,390 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $299.61, for a total transaction of $33,673,167.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 85,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,466,850. The trade was a 56.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Tesla from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Glj Research restated a “sell” rating and set a $24.86 price target on shares of Tesla in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $515.00 price target on shares of Tesla in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Tesla from $295.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Roth Mkm raised shares of Tesla from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $380.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $313.15.

Tesla Trading Down 5.6 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $371.15 and a 200 day moving average of $317.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.02. The company has a market capitalization of $847.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 129.14, a PEG ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.50.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.08). Tesla had a return on equity of 10.31% and a net margin of 7.26%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tesla

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TSLA. Hengehold Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tesla by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $544,000 after buying an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI lifted its position in shares of Tesla by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 6,990 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $2,823,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Tesla by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 2,814 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Tesla by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,305 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $2,950,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vista Finance LLC raised its stake in Tesla by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 3,510 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.20% of the company’s stock.

Tesla Company Profile

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.