Tesla's one-time tariff refund masks weak core profitability, making its disclosures look like a grift. Gordon Johnson says $447 million of Q3 gross profit came from the refund, over 61% of EBIT, leaving a core EBIT margin of just 1.0%. x.comÂ
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Value Investor, Short Seller
Tesla's Q3 earnings beat came from tariff refunds, not operations. The Supreme Court's IEEPA ruling let Tesla book $786M in refunds, less $339M owed to storage customers: $447M or 62% of Q3 operating income. Without that, GAAP EPS was $0.12 versus $0.20 estimated and operating margin 1.0%. Gross profit is not keeping pace with spending. Tesla trades at 500x trailing earnings versus 32x for the Mag-6 despite falling Q3 revenue, EBIT down 56% year on year and reduced capex. x.com x.com x.com x.com … Show more
Tesla's operating profit keeps shrinking even as revenue rebounds, making it look like a weak cyclical automaker. S&P Capital IQ shows 2025 revenue falling 2.9% to $94.8 billion and EBIT dropping from $7.7 billion in 2024 to $4.4 billion in 2025; latest twelve-month revenue reaches $103.6 billion while EBIT falls further to $3.1 billion. x.comÂ
Tesla's stronger gross margin and automotive revenue suggest its car business is healthier than bears expected. Gross margin was 19.6% versus 17.8% expected; automotive revenue beat by over $700M, following 486,532 deliveries versus roughly 462,000 expected. Total revenue missed slightly, likely outside autos. Cybercab, unsupervised FSD and Optimus remain the key call tests. Overweight, $697 target with 80% upside. x.com x.comÂ
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.comÂ
Tesla's declining operating income and margins make it crazy to invest at a 300x P/E. Per @scidood, operating income fell from $13.7B in 2022 to $4.4B in 2025 and stood at $2.1B through Q3 2026; operating margin fell from 16.8% in 2022 to 2.7% through Q3 2026. x.comÂ
Tesla's Robotaxi and Optimus can carry substantial value before major profits because future cash flows, growth and the chance of success matter more than current P/E. In an illustrative model, a one-year delay cuts opportunity value about 11% if payments stay unchanged; faster sustained growth can more than offset it, while reliable deployment can raise the assessed chance of success. These figures are not Tesla forecasts; investment costs and execution risk still matter. x.comÂ
Tesla's falling energy and storage revenue undercuts what bulls call its next growth case. In Q3, that revenue fell 16% year over year; auto revenue fell 3%, operating income 56%, GAAP net income 43%, GAAP EPS 44% and free cash flow 62%. These terrible results make $500 a share look unlikely, even though the stock has not fallen 20%. x.com x.comÂ
Tesla's car business is ex-growth and in decline, and its financial numbers are dire. Per the Q3 earnings breakdown quoted in the post, total revenue was flat, automotive revenue fell 3% year over year, net income fell 43% and free cash flow fell 62%. x.com x.comÂ
Tesla's upside is a robotaxi and Optimus bet, not a story about rising profits. Net income has dropped from about $15B to $3.8B in two years, and free cash flow turns negative this year on $25B of capex, so the current P&L does not support the claim that Tesla is becoming ever more profitable. x.comÂ
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.comÂ