Elon Musk Tesla Motors 2013: The Rise of Tesla Motors Stock and How Musk Will Grow the Brand
Tesla Motors isn't your ordinary car company. For instance, you cannot go to a Tesla Car dealership and buy a car since no dealerships exist. The sales of the cars are made directly through the Tesla Motors website. Secondly, they only sell one car and in their lifetime have only had two different models. The current model for sale is the Tesla Model S. The first car they produced and sold was the Tesla Roadster. Thirdly, no Tesla has ever run on gas and none ever will. The cars are powered by electricity and give off no emissions. The Model S is also eligible for a $7500 tax rebate though that is expiring soon.
As you can see, Tesla is going against the grain compared with Auto Industry giants Ford, GM, Toyota and the like. The only other purely electric car on the market today is the Nissan Leaf. The Leaf, however, has a paltry 80-mile range while the Model S can go nearly 300 miles without charging up. Of course, the two cars are aimed at wildly different markets. The Model S is unabashedly a rich man's toy. It starts up in the mid 60s though higher performance models quickly increase that price. The Leaf, on the other hand, goes for around 30 thousand dollars.
Despite the small target market Tesla Motors is a very solid company. In fact, its stock is now selling anywhere between 140 and 190 dollars. In April of 2013, the stock was trading at around 45 dollars! What are the reasons for this massive jump in investor loyalty? The Model S is the best-reviewed American car of all time and has honors such as Motor Trend's 2013 Car of the Year Award. It's also selling very well, especially in its home state of California. Every week, 400 cars roll off the production line located in Fremont, Calif.
Another reason for the stock's sudden surge is price is the financial outlook of the company. Back in 2010, the company was struggling. It needed to raise massive capital to build the Fremont-based factory and had recently laid-off scores off employees. The auto industry as a whole was hit hard by the 2008 recession and struggled to get back on its feet. Tesla had to take out a half billion-dollar government loan to stay afloat. Due to the successes of the Model S, Tesla recently paid back the loan 9 years ahead of schedule.
Elon Musk created Tesla with a vision to change the archaic auto industry for the better. He plans to further grow the Tesla brand by introducing two new vehicles. The Tesla Model X is already taking preorders and is a luxury crossover. A cheaper, by Tesla's standards at least, model may arrive in 2015 or 2016. The purported cost of the car is around 40 thousand dollars or half the price of the current Model S. No other details about that car exist as of yet.
Are you impressed with Tesla's growth? Do you want an electric car? Let us know in the comments section below.
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