Stone Fox Capital
Founder, CIO & Portfolio Manager of Stone Fox Capital
Tesla shareholders would take on AI compute risk in a SpaceX merger while robotaxis and humanoid robots would be immaterial to SpaceX's targeted $500 billion-plus ARR business. Tesla's robotaxis are still far from a $1 billion business and will probably struggle against more focused companies. x.com
Tesla's capital-intensive charging network will lack the reach of venue-based rivals, worsening its EV cost competitiveness. Its bidirectional-capable cars cost much more than competitors', and its Powerwall is also more expensive. Tesla has not yet surfaced a way to discharge from a car to the grid from anywhere and get paid, while rivals are working on one. x.com x.com
Tesla's Roadster stunt could hurt its credibility with institutional investors because it offers no evidence of a profitable, scalable robotaxi service. The prototype showed neither a flying car nor a car allowed on public streets. Tesla's Q3 automotive margins, operating cash flow and measurable autonomous-driving progress on October 21 will say more about its future than the stunt. x.com
Expanding unsupervised robotaxi coverage supports Tesla's autonomy thesis and the view that it is entering the “and then” phase. Sawyer Merritt lists fully autonomous geofences in Austin, Houston, Dallas, Miami, Orlando and Tampa, with Houston's area up 916% in one day. x.com
Tesla isn't a buy yet because the stock, at over 300x trailing earnings, already prices in Robotaxi success that Cybercab hasn't proven at scale. Cybercab began rides in Austin, but about 45 of roughly 420 Tesla autonomous vehicles in Texas only show the cars can run. Order volumes, intervention and accident rates and per-car profit are undisclosed, NHTSA is still reviewing safety, and Q2 operating margin was 1.4% with -$1.1B free cash flow. Approval, fleet growth and unit economics are key. … Show more
Tesla's 200x earnings multiple asks too much of weak current results and speculative future products. Third-quarter revenue fell 0.4% year over year and EBIT missed estimates by 25%, despite gross-margin and cash-flow beats. Robotaxis, humanoids and other future plans may have appeal, but impressive parts of the business do not make the stock worth its current price. x.com x.com x.com
Tesla's Cybercab ramp is gaining ground against Waymo in Austin. Robotaxi Tracker puts Tesla at 438,000 robotaxi miles in the week to October 18, versus Waymo's 406,000 weekly average in Q2 2026; Waymo's data lag means this is not a same-week comparison. x.com
Tesla's stagnant car business and rising AI and robotics spending are squeezing current earnings before those bets have paid off. Q3 revenue was flat as auto sales slipped and regulatory credits collapsed; operating expenses rose 39%, operating income fell 56%, and EPS dropped from $0.43 to $0.24. The spend-now, profit-later strategy is testing investors' patience. x.com
Tesla is too expensive right now; it would only start to look interesting under $250, with a small position, and more so under $200. It is hard to be too bullish while Elon Musk spends at least half his time on SpaceX, xAI, Starlink and other ventures. Combining everything into one $2 trillion company would be very interesting, since a SpaceX IPO alone should be nowhere near $2 trillion. The robotaxi and robotics themes are still worth watching over 5+ years. x.com
Tesla's growing Texas robotaxi roster could mean more vehicles deployed soon. Its 970 DMV registrations, including 463 Cybercabs, have significantly narrowed the gap with Waymo's 1,207. Registration does not mean those vehicles are operating in the field yet. x.com
Tesla's robotaxi opportunity is smaller near term than the market priced in because the roughly $60B US ride-hailing market cannot justify the hype. 380,000 unsupervised Q2 miles prove the technology works, but a $300B+ market requires Americans to give up car ownership. Uber and Lyft cost about $2.40 a mile and Tesla's robotaxi about $2.00, versus under $0.80 for a private car. Maintenance, insurance, charging and cleaning eat about 37% of fares, so cutting prices would destroy unit economics. … Show more