Raymond James & Associates Acquires 137,056 Shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) by 11.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,304,551 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 137,056 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Tesla were worth $258,144,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TSLA. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Tesla during the second quarter valued at $25,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A purchased a new position in Tesla in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Kessler Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Tesla by 35.9% in the second quarter. Kessler Investment Group LLC now owns 193 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Aspect Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Tesla by 121.3% during the second quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 208 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. increased its position in shares of Tesla by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. now owns 190 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.20% of the company’s stock.

Tesla Price Performance

NASDAQ TSLA traded up $1.98 on Friday, reaching $216.12. The company had a trading volume of 88,620,586 shares, compared to its average volume of 90,901,848. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $689.25 billion, a PE ratio of 55.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 2.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $215.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $190.97. Tesla, Inc. has a 12 month low of $138.80 and a 12 month high of $278.98.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by ($0.10). Tesla had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 10.41%. The firm had revenue of $25.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Tesla, Inc. will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Tesla

In other news, SVP Xiaotong Zhu sold 650 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.21, for a total transaction of $113,236.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 65,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,350,652.55. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 66,364 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.96, for a total value of $14,597,425.44. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 85,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,696,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Xiaotong Zhu sold 650 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.21, for a total value of $113,236.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 65,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,350,652.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 25.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TSLA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a research note on Monday, July 29th. China Renaissance upgraded Tesla from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $290.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, July 5th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Tesla in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Tesla from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, HSBC raised their target price on shares of Tesla from $120.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $204.21.

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.