Ross Gerber, co-founder of investment firm Gerber Kawasaki, just dropped a bombshell about Tesla Inc. (TSLA). In a post on X over the weekend, he suggested the electric vehicle maker might never report a GAAP profit again. That's quite the statement, especially coming from someone who's been closely watching the company.
The Sales Slump Behind the Warning
Gerber didn't spell out his reasoning in detail, but the numbers tell a pretty stark story. Tesla's sales have been heading south across the globe. In November alone, U.S. sales dropped 23%. Here's the interesting twist though: the company's market share in the EV sector actually climbed above 56%, which suggests the entire EV market might be cooling off rather than Tesla losing ground to competitors.
The situation looks even rougher overseas. European sales took a serious hit in October, with Tesla registering just 6,964 new vehicles compared to 13,519 units in October 2024. That's a 48.5% year-over-year decline, and it's hard to spin that positively.
The Bull Case Remains Alive
Not everyone shares Gerber's pessimism. Dan Ives from Wedbush Securities is sticking to his guns with an $800 price target for Tesla's stock. That represents more than 65% upside from Friday's closing price of $481.20. Ives is particularly excited about the Robotaxi opportunity, expecting the service to expand to over 30 cities next year. Whether that's enough to offset the sales challenges remains to be seen.
Rivian Enters the Autonomous Arena
Tesla's competitive landscape just got more interesting. Rivian Automotive Inc. (RIVN) announced pricing for its autonomous driving features that could turn some heads: $49.99 per month or a flat $2,500 fee. Compare that to Tesla's $99 monthly subscription or $8,000 one-time payment, and suddenly Rivian looks like the budget-friendly option.
Rivian's approach uses both LiDAR and cameras for its autonomous technology. CEO RJ Scaringe even hinted the company might jump into the Robotaxi race down the road. Meanwhile, Tesla has already registered over 1,500 vehicles for its California ride-hailing fleet and is running driverless tests in Austin.
Musk's Pay Package Victory
In other Tesla news, the Delaware Supreme Court handed Elon Musk a major win by reversing an earlier decision and approving his controversial $56 billion compensation package from 2018. This isn't just about back pay. If Musk exercises all the stock options tied to that plan, his ownership stake in Tesla would jump from roughly 12.4% to about 18.1% of the expanded share base.
Price Action: Tesla shares declined 0.45% to $481.20 at Friday's close, then edged up 0.30% to $482.65 in after-hours trading.




