Tesla Shocks Wall Street With Record EV Deliveries And Surprise $22 Million Profit

Tesla Motors is sitting on cloud nine this morning after posting third quarter earnings that beat out Wall Street estimates and sent its stock price up. Specifically, Tesla reported net income of $22 million, or 14 cents per share, for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016, marking the first time the company has posted a profit since the first quarter of 2013.

Just a year ago, Tesla posted a loss of nearly $230 million, or $1.78 per share. However, the car maker was able to more than double revenue from then to now, collecting $2.3 billion in the Q3 along with a positive free cash flow of $176 million. The impressive jump in numbers was due to a whopping 114 percent increase in car deliveries compared to the same quarter a year ago.

"New product launches, increased store efficiency and new store openings drove year-on-year order growth in Q3, while self-driving hardware and other product enhancements position Tesla for additional market share gains. Our energy storage products are gaining increased market acceptance, firmly establishing Tesla as a leader in energy storage solutions, and surpassing our competitors in the breadth and scope of our offerings across residential, commercial, and utility-scale storage markets," Tesla said.


Tesla saw net orders for its new Model S and Model X vehicles grow 68 percent year-over-year in the third quarter. That shows its expansion efforts are paying off—Tesla opened 17 new stores and service centers to increase its customer support network to 250 locations globally.

The automaker also noted record production levels in Q3. It built 25,185 vehicles, a 37 percent jump from Q2 and nearly twice as many as it produced in the same quarter last year.

"More than four years since its introduction, Model S continues to expand market share, which is a testament to our continuous vehicle innovation. In the U.S., which is Tesla’s most mature market, Model S deliveries grew nearly 60 percent year over year, increasing its lead status with a 32 percent share of the top 12 selling large luxury sedans, as Model S unit growth significantly outpaced U.S. large luxury sedan category sales growth," Tesla added.

Investors have taken notice of Tesla's turnaround and future outlook. The company's stock jumped 5 percent in after market hours, following the earnings release. Even better for Tesla, the automaker expects its performance to continue into Q4.