TESLA 4Q EARNINGS FALL SHORT OF ANALYST ESTIMATES AS COMPANY WARNS OF LOWER SALES GROWTH THIS YEAR

Tesla’s net income more than doubled last quarter thanks to a big one-time tax benefit, but it warned of “notably lower” sales growth this year.

- 

The Austin, Texas, electric vehicle, solar panel and battery maker said that its net income was $7.93 billion from October through December, compared with $3.69 billion a year earlier.

But excluding one-time items such as the $5.9 billion noncash tax benefit for deferred tax assets, the company made $2.49 billion, or 71 cents per share. That was down 39% from a year ago and short of analyst estimates of 73 cents per share according to FactSet.

Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja said the change in asset valuation would raise the company’s taxes.

Tesla reported quarterly revenue of $25.17 billion, up 3% from a year earlier but also below analyst estimates of $25.64 billion.

Profits were off because Tesla lowered prices worldwide through the year in an effort to boost its sales and market share.

Earlier this month Tesla reported that fourthquarter sales rose by almost 20%, boosted by steep price cuts in the U.S. and worldwide through the year. Some cuts amounted to $20,000 on higher priced models.

Shares of Tesla Inc. fell 6% in trading after the announcement. So far this year, Tesla shares are down about 16%.

Tesla’s sales growth rate was slower than previous quarters. For the full year, it sales rose 37.7%, short of the 50% growth rate that CEO Elon Musk predicted in most years. The company reported deliveries of 484,507 for the quarter and roughly 1.8 million for the full year.