“If Tesla Motors Inc. CEO Elon Musk turns into the next Steve Jobs or Henry Ford, Goldman Sachs sees considerable upside for the electric car maker’s stock price,” Steven Russolillo reports for The Wall Street Journal. “But that’s not a likely scenario.”
“Goldman analyst Patrick Archambault also outlined several optimistic scenarios where shares could feasibly trade well above current levels,” Russolillo reports. “‘If Tesla’s auto business were to be truly disruptive (to the whole auto industry, not just luxury vehicles), then there would be considerable upside,’ Mr. Archambault wrote. ‘To measure what is truly transformational, we need [to] draw on the experience of past technologies like the iPhone, the Ford Model-T, and selected consumer durables like refrigerators/laundry appliances/dishwashers. All of these were new technologies that were widely adopted and radically revolutionized consumption patterns.'”
“Goldman comes up with a $200 price target… some 20% below Tuesday’s closing level of $240.04,” Russolillo reports. “Not exactly an overly optimistic forecast.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: There was only one Steve Jobs. We’d be extremely lucky to get someone like him once per century.
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Only one Steve, only one Elon and only one birdy that posts in MDN
I’ve actually been looking into purchasing a model S and in my research of Elon and Tesla, have noticed quite a few similarities between the late Mr. Jobs and Mr. Musk. Elon is a visionary and seems to be “bucking the trend” in the EV market. Might have to add a little Tesla stock to my portfolio…
I want a Tesla, but at around $30,000. Methinks they won’t be going for that, ever, (sadly).
$35-$40K Tesla is coming in the next few years. That’s what the Gigafactory is all about.
I agree because the profit motive will cause one or more battery developers to come up with a truly better, cheaper, high density battery.
Mr. Battery — that’s what we need!
Mr Fusion is what we need 🙂
” better, cheaper, high density battery.”
unless the laws of physics and chemistry disagree
Seems to me he has already proved himself a visionary with a practical bent. He’s impressive in his own right comparisons or otherwise but he is his own man who will succeed or otherwise in his own right.
What happens if Elon Musk is the next Steve Ballmer?
Take the road that is well traveled.
I think we can safely say Elon Musk is not in the of the same ilk as Steve Ballmer. They’re at opposite ends of at least one personality matrix.
Ballmer was a master at making a complete ass of himself. He was an embarrassment to Microsoft. It was impossible to take him seriously about anything.
Elon is a visionary, a man of integrity and intelligence. Ballmer couldn’t be further from being in the same league as him. Ballmer hadn’t contributed one single positive thing to society.
People like Jobs and Musk have changed the world. Ballmer isn’t worthy to even be mentioned in the same sentence as these two wonderful human beings.
This article is predicated on a lie. The electric car is not a new technology. Hell, Tesla isn’t even a different take on new technology. It’s rich backers and branding combined meets irrational exuberance.
What’s more, Steve was committed to Apple. Elon is involved with many different enterprises… and Tesla isn’t even the one he’s most passionate about.
Next, Pixar, Disney,
Just to name a few…
Nice. Very nice.
And the iPod wasn’t the first MP3 player. And the iPhone wasn’t the first cell phone. And the iPad wasn’t the first tablet computer. And the………
You think the Model S is to other cars at this time what the iPhone was to other phones in 2007? Nice try, though.
The Model S can be seen as an analogue to the iPhone because it is literally one of the first electric cars to show a profit and one that drivers get behind the wheel and actually enjoy driving with the huge amount of torque available to the drive train.
It breaks new ground in that sense and is revolutionising the electric car industry by Tesla making an electric car that is desirable by drivers rather than one which was plodding, like the iPhone broke new ground in the smartphone industry.
So you’re wrong and Logic is right. I’m sorry but there it is. You just lack the necessary vision to see beyond existing horizons. Not your fault, but still shows that you’re a visionless man, a Cook analogue if you like.
Pretty sure it’s not turning a profit. Tesla is very much in the red.
It’s in the black after you factor in federal environmental grants for the manufacture and assembly of electric vehicles.
so artificially manufactured factors are a valid way to create a “profit”?
Not in the real world, and reality always wins.
How do Loockheed Martin, General Dynamics and Boeing (to a smaller extent) make their profits? Through Defense Dept. spending. Any difference as to the source if it came from the Dept. of the Environment?
So how do you factor in the subsidy of iPhones?
How’s that reality score sheet looking now?
There is no iPhone subsidy. The consumer pays for every nickel of the price. It is a disguised time payment plan with some really silly upgrade incentives at the end of the contract, namely you can’t get the principal payments to stop, even after you own the device, so you are foolish not to upgrade. That is changing with T-Mobile and MNVOs starting to offer services for iPhones, but there has never been a subsidy.
When a company produces a product for an agreed-upon price, and that product is purchased, it has earned its profits.
When the government performs social engineering by artificially incentivizing certain products by subsidy, there’s no telling how the product would be received by the market on its own merits, and therefore no comparison.
What environmental grants? Tesla got a guaranteed loan that it paid off *nine* years early.
If you’re talking about the electric/hybrid rebates, these are applicable to many other brands than just Tesla.
So your point is?
@Higo and the other staggeringly ignorant people on this forum: It takes less than a minute to learn that Tesla had net income of $46 million in Q4Y14. In fact, cash-flow from operations was $130 million on sales of $761 million. It has cash reserves of $846 million. So, Higo, and the others here who clearly haven’t a clue how Tesla is actually performing, the company is not “very much in the red.” And please quit with the government grant stuff: Tesla very publicly paid off its entire Dept of Energy loan, with interest, last year. Tesla is for real, and Musk is a vital part of the reason.
By “Pretty sure” you mean blindly guessing? You are dead wrong btw, Tesla is killing it.
You have no clue what you are speaking about.
Safest car EVER made. That alone qualifies it as an analogue to the iPhone in 2007.
You made an analogy. I made an analogy. I will refrain from calling you a condescending asshole. Or even a uninformed prick. I’m better than that.
Regarding the very old history of the electric car, here’s an interesting story about the circa 1913 electric car by Henry Ford:
http://jalopnik.com/5564999/the-failed-electric-car-of-henry-ford-and-thomas-edison
Another historical reference. Before internal combustion power took over, there were electrically powered London Taxi Cabs introduced in 1897 and operated by the London Electrical Cab Company. They were nicknamed “hummingbirds” because of the sound they made, or were otherwise known as Bersey’s, after the name of the the man who designed them.
There was one Edison, one Lincoln, one Disney, one Dylan, one Steve Jobs.
And, while we’re at it, one Musk.
Fairly good streamable bio for Musk on Netflix.
Tesla has NO market share and makes no real money. Yet, Goldman Sachs is bullish on Tesla?
Right.
I’d like to see Tesla succeed big. Unfortunately, it faces a big challenge in climates that include winter.
Tesla would more mirror the motorcycle season in such places, but with much higher prices throttling sales.
Finding a solution to that would put Tesla in Apple’s league.
Tesla’s biggest customer lives above the Arctic Circle. Model S performs BRILLIANTLY in adverse conditions.
I can imagine the electric aspects of the car being more efficient in the cold. But the batteries? What current battery technology deals with cold temperatures?
Tesla is going down the road more parallel to Amazon, rather then Apple. Both Amazon and Tesla were/are propped up by investors but can only just do a little better then break even…
Come on guys/ gals… Musk is no joke..
He uis up there with the best of them !
They all have / had their weknesses and strengths… Including Jobs and Musk.
Hey there is only one of each one of us out there …
RUN FOR YOUR LIFE Elon Musk. The Goldman Sachs vampires have taken an interest in you. 😈
Put Steve Jobs in the story and your hits go up.
Put Steve Jobs in the headline and you hits skyrocket.
Putting ““But that’s not a likely scenario.” in the second sentence says that you’ve been had.
That ‘s what I’ve been thinking; That guy has almost the same attitude as Steve Jobs had.
Well he (Elon) is doing better than Tucker did when he tried taking on the auto industry.
Well, Elon Musk is the greatest innovator&visionary since SJ so it’s only natural this comparison is done.
When number one (= Steve Jobs) dies then number two (= Elon Musk) takes his place, this is all just simple math…