By no means thoughts the headlines. 2022 was Tesla’s finest 12 months ever, Elon Musk claimed within the automaker’s This autumn 2022 earnings name this week.

Based on Tesla [PDF], the electrical automobile maker introduced in $24.32 billion in income within the remaining three months of 2022 – a 37 % year-over-year improve. Earnings per share have been additionally up 40 % year-over-year to $1.19, and each figures beat Wall Avenue’s expectations. Revenue from the quarter amounted to $3.7 billion, up 59 %.

As for the total 12 months, Musk highlighted through the conference call with analysts that his producer generated $12.5 billion in web revenue, up 128 % on 2021, and $7.5 billion in free money move through the interval. Gross sales for the 12 months amounted to $81.5 billion, up 51 %.

“It is price noting that each one these information have been within the face of large difficulties,” Musk stated.

Scratch the floor, and the image adjustments a bit. That aforementioned income in This autumn got here with a lower in gross revenue margin, whereas Tesla’s total share of earnings from automotive gross sales slipped as effectively.

EBITDA margins additionally decreased in This autumn, and whereas total free money move improved in 2022, This autumn was a distinct story: 12 months over 12 months, This autumn noticed web money from working actions lower by 29 %, whereas free money move shrunk by almost half.

Tesla’s inventory worth was nonetheless up barely on this information, and has been up 45 % within the first 26 days of 2023. Nonetheless, a one-year look again at Tesla’s inventory worth reveals its worth has halved since January 2022.

Musk and co. additionally stated through the assembly they deliberate to cut costs to maintain the biz worthwhile, and are even banking on a recession to carry bills down.

“If the recession is a severe one and I believe it in all probability shall be, however I hope it is not, that will result in significant decreases in nearly all of our enter prices,” Musk stated.

Tesla is in style as a result of I’m in style

We be aware that Tesla missed its development targets for 2022 and delivered fewer vehicles than analysts anticipated, although deliveries have been nonetheless up year-over-year, as was manufacturing. The automaker slashed sticker prices across the globe just a few weeks in the past. Value cuts have been additionally essential to adapt to new electric vehicle incentives.

“The commonest query we have been getting from buyers is about demand… so I wish to put that concern to relaxation,” Musk stated through the name.

He claimed Tesla’s year-to-date orders have been the strongest within the automaker’s historical past and are outselling the speed of manufacturing by nearly double. That will be a turnaround from the tip of 2022, when Tesla reported producing 439,701 vehicles and delivering 405,278 of them.

“Demand far exceeds manufacturing, and we really are making some small worth will increase consequently,” Musk stated. 

When requested if his buy of Twitter and its accompanying litany of PR disasters was negatively affecting Tesla’s model picture, Musk’s response appeared to conflate his private reputation on Twitter with a constructive notion of the Tesla model.

“Let me verify my Twitter account. OK, so I’ve obtained 127 million followers. It continues to develop very quickly. That implies that I am moderately in style,” Musk stated, “so I believe Twitter is definitely an extremely highly effective device for driving demand for Tesla.”

That implies that I am moderately in style

Follower counts, after all, do not point out whether or not somebody approves of the person they’re following or are doing so with a vital eye. It additionally would not account for followers who might not even be human.

Musk managed to squeeze a pitch to advertisers into his protection of Twitter, too: “I might actually encourage firms on the market… to make extra use of Twitter,” the Tesla, SpaceX and Twitter CEO stated. “It’ll assist them drive gross sales simply because it has with Tesla,” Musk added. That is amid reports that promoting gross sales has cratered at Twitter.

Mood your Cybertruck expectations higher than its home windows

Musk alluded to some new Tesla fashions being unveiled in March on the firm’s annual shareholder assembly, however present automobiles which have but to succeed in manufacturing – just like the Cybertruck – are one other story. 

When requested if the Cybertruck would enter manufacturing in the midst of 2023, Musk stated it will start “possibly someday this summer time.”

He famous that the beginning of manufacturing is a sluggish course of, “so I would not put an excessive amount of inventory in begin of manufacturing. It is type of when does quantity manufacturing really occur, and that is subsequent 12 months.”

Andrew Baglino, Tesla’s SVP of powertrain and power engineering, stated set up of Cybertruck manufacturing tools had not too long ago begun on the automaker’s gigafactory in Austin, Texas, and manufacturing would not ramp up till 2024.

Tesla additionally introduced this week it was planning a $3.6 billion expansion of its Nevada gigafactory so as to add battery manufacturing capability and a devoted manufacturing facility for the Tesla Semi. 

Shopper Experiences additionally launched particulars of its check of 12 energetic driver help programs this week, which discovered Tesla’s Autopilot was falling behind improvements from Ford, GM and different established automakers as issues over the safety of Tesla’s tech proceed to develop.

Musk stated through the name that an replace to Autopilot was not too long ago launched so as to add full self-driving assist on metropolis streets, and the system was displaying clear security enhancements.

“We might not have launched the FSD Beta if the security statistics weren’t glorious,” Musk claimed. ®


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