Tesla Bulls vs. Bears Are Getting Loud Ahead of Earnings

Shares of Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) are trading around $425 as we head into next week’s earnings report, down roughly 15% from the all-time high set in December.

That pullback has been uncomfortable, particularly as the benchmark S&P 500 index was setting fresh highs in the meantime. Still, it hasn’t broken the broader uptrend that has underpinned the rally since before last summer.

What makes this setup especially tense is the backdrop. Macro nerves are rising as geopolitical tensions push investors out of equities, and Tesla is entering earnings with unusually loud voices from both the bulls and the bears. The result is a stock balanced on a knife-edge, with plenty of opportunities for investors to make or lose money. Let’s jump in and take a closer look. 

Why Tesla Is at a Critical Juncture

From a price action perspective, things look decent on the basis that Tesla’s longer-term uptrend remains intact. The recent selloff has tested, and so far held, the rising uptrend that has defined the rally since before the summer. This is constructive, but it doesn’t hide the fact that momentum has still cooled meaningfully since December’s peak.

A run of red days to start the year, combined with a bearish MACD crossover, was a reminder that while Tesla might have gained as much as 130% last year, this isn’t a one-way trade. With earnings now just days away, the stock is in a position where it needs to justify those gains, and do so quickly, as any wobble in guidance or tone is likely to be magnified by the broader risk-off mood in markets.

The Bull Case: More Than an Auto Company

The bullish argument rests on the idea that Tesla is no longer being valued purely as a car manufacturer, which, in the eyes of bulls, makes many traditional valuation concerns less relevant. Believers in its long-term potential are increasingly framing it as a platform business, with cars now just one part of a much bigger picture that includes autonomy software, robotics, and energy storage, among others. 

While EV demand has, admittedly, softened and margins have come under pressure, bulls argue the market is already looking ahead to a future in which Tesla generates software-like margins, which justifies its software-like valuation today.

Supporters also point to the pace at which Tesla’s autonomous footprint is expanding, arguing that competition is accelerating progress rather than stalling it. The belief is that as analysts start to model this transition more seriously, valuation will look less stretched, if not normalized.  

The Bear Case: Valuation Leaves No Room for Error

Still, the skeptics (and there are plenty of them) see a very different picture. From their perspective, it’s all well and good to have lofty ambitions for the future, but the reality is that Tesla is facing headwinds on several fronts. Deliveries and production growth have slowed, competition has intensified, and global EV demand is no longer expanding at the pace investors once expected.

Valuation remains the central concern. With the price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio still hovering around 285, the bears argue that Tesla needs to deliver near-perfect execution to justify current levels. Promised growth drivers like robotaxis and humanoid robots may be compelling long-term stories, but their near-term commercial viability is questionable. When you consider how much the stock has gained since last summer, it puts an awful lot of pressure on next week’s report to not only justify those gains, but also future ones. 

Layer in the rapidly rising geopolitical uncertainty and jittery equity markets, and the margin for disappointment looks thin. In that context, anything short of a solidly bullish earnings report could trigger a selloff. 

How Investors Might Approach Earnings

This split sets up two very different ways to approach the stock over the next week or so. For investors with a higher risk tolerance, any pre-earnings weakness could be seen as an opportunity to build exposure at a discount, particularly if they believe the long-term story remains intact.

For those who like to sleep at night, patience may be the better strategy. Waiting for clarity on both earnings, guidance, and the broader macro backdrop reduces the risk of being caught on the wrong side of volatility. One thing is for sure: Tesla is going to remain one of the most closely-watched stocks out there for some time yet.

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