Tesla Inc. will surpass Wall Street expectations of 170,000 deliveries for the first quarter, according to Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives.The analyst mentioned in a note Tuesday that Wedbush has updated its delivery model to reflect increased optimism.
For the first quarter of 2021, Wedbush boosted its expectation on Model 3/Y estimates to 160,000 units from 132,000 units. For Model S/X vehicles Wedbush estimates 14,000 units compared to 12,500 units.
Ives raised outlook on the total Automotive delivery revenue to $8.79 billion from $7.67 billion.
For the second quarter of 2021, Wedbush predicts Model 3/Y deliveries to be 166,000 units, higher than prior estimate 144,000. For the Model S/X, Wedbush projects approximately 14,000 deliveries compared with the previous estimate of nearly 13,000 units.
Wedbush expects total deliveries in the FY 21 to be 830,000, which is more optimistic compared to prior estimate of 774,000 units.
The upward revisions reflect Wedbush’s belief that despite the chip shortage Tesla saw tailwinds in China and the U.S. “with EV consumer demand patterns that continued to improve discernibly.” Wedbush suggests that the improvement was seen since the beginning of January, with Tesla experiencing stregth in February and March, particularly in China.
According to Ives, the recent sell-off in EV shares spells a “massive buying opportunity” to own the Chinese EV players as well as Tesla heading into what he called the “golden age of EVs.”
Ives maintained his Neutral rating and $950 price target on the electric carmaker’s shares.