Clarkston Capital Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,075 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,242,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Tesla in the fourth quarter worth about $14,420,248,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Tesla by 36,790.0% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 8,660,672 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $3,497,526,000 after acquiring an additional 8,637,195 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Tesla by 4,963.0% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,834,707 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $2,356,288,000 after purchasing an additional 5,719,466 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Tesla by 55,181.0% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,382,674 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $1,769,899,000 after purchasing an additional 4,374,746 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in Tesla by 194.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,486,739 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $2,215,765,000 after purchasing an additional 3,624,910 shares during the period. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on TSLA shares. Cowen raised Tesla from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $404.00 price objective on shares of Tesla in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Tesla from $440.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Tesla in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $475.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Tesla from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $312.65.

Tesla Price Performance

TSLA stock opened at $239.43 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $770.13 billion, a PE ratio of 117.37, a P/E/G ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.58. Tesla, Inc. has a 12 month low of $138.80 and a 12 month high of $488.54. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $305.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $323.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.08). Tesla had a net margin of 7.26% and a return on equity of 10.31%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Tesla

In other Tesla news, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.63, for a total value of $41,163,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,222,802. The trade was a 94.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James R. Murdoch sold 54,776 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $240.79, for a total transaction of $13,189,513.04. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 477,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,859,478.69. This trade represents a 10.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 477,228 shares of company stock worth $166,849,043 in the last quarter. 20.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Tesla

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.