What’s Tesla Saying About Our Market?

First, my confession on Tesla. I wasn’t smart enough to buy it pre-earnings release and make a bunch,  overnight. 

There are no exceptions. I’ve always ruled out owning stocks where I didn’t approve of its headman or didn’t accept his company’s accounting practices. 

First off, Elon Musk overcompensated himself.  His proxy statement years ago showed how he allocated Tesla stock to himself. It was a big bunch of equity. I remember 20% or 25% of the capitalization came his way, gratis. 

I’m unwilling to pass over his serious support of Donald Trump. If Trump prevails, he could attempt to make himself President for Life, and claim the right to appoint his own successor. With a stroke of the pen, he could erase our Democracy, and turn us into a Banana Republic. Our headman would wear white suits and steal us blind. 

I was at a round table dinner at Mar-a-Lago opposite Trump’s wife who didn’t speak a word all night. Asking my dinner companion why so, he laughed and told me the wife wasn’t allowed to speak. 

I don’t invite Republicans to dinner anymore and allow them to say anything, either. How else can you maintain a democracy?

Coulda, woulda, shoulda. I could have bought Mar-a-Lago for a song decades ago, but I didn’t. We’re close by on the lake where Trump had the Coast Guard patrol with motor launches armed with a machine gun at the stern of the boat. 

On the electric car guy, Wall Street should actually be ashamed of itself. Not only did they miss on fundamentals on a stock with a major capitalization of hundreds of billions. Where were traders with courage to go against the grain? The security analysis on this baby hardly scratched its surface. 

Houses like Goldman Sachs run beefed up deal, trading, and underwriting divisions.  Investments in fundamental research is pure overhead, so kept simple.  

I’m a research based operator, but I missed Tesla for reasons stated here-in. I shoulda been more flexible in my stock picks. How many stocks pop 44 points overnight?

Tesla’s Stock Trajectory

Pre its earnings report, Tesla’s chart was scary, indicating declining tops past years. Too tough a call. From here, Tesla’s price will be driven by earnings power, not sentiment alone.