Musk Doubles Down on Claim Tesla Is All-Clear on Cash in Tweet

• April 13 2018
• Ryan Beene, Esha Dey

Tesla Inc. meant what it said when telling investors this month that another capital raise won’t be necessary this year, and Elon Musk just elaborated on why.

Tesla Inc. meant what it said when telling investors this month that another capital raise won’t be necessary this year, and Elon Musk just elaborated on why.

The electric-car maker will be profitable and cash-flow positive in the third and fourth quarters, the chief executive officer predicted in an early Friday morning tweet.

That’s a rosy outlook relative to Wall Street expectations. Tesla is projected to burn through about $994 million in the second half of the year, according to analysts’ average estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Analysts also are expecting adjusted net losses of about $192 million and $35 million in the third and fourth quarters, respectively.

Reasons for Musk’s optimism lie in his assessment of progress making more Model 3 sedans. The 46-year-old billionaire gave CBS This Morning a tour of Tesla’s assembly plant in Fremont, California, and said the company should be able to sustain producing 2,000 of the cars a week after resolving manufacturing issues that had been crimping output.

Tesla probably will boost Model 3 output by three- or four-fold in the second quarter, Musk told CBS. Tesla shares climbed as much as 3.3 percent to $303.75 before regular trading.

— With assistance by Brandon Kochkodin, Jaana Clayton, and Elizabeth Wasserman