Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) by 69.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,710,535 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,752,361 shares during the quarter. Tesla comprises about 0.8% of Franklin Resources Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Tesla were worth $2,709,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hengehold Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Tesla by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC now owns 1,347 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $544,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI grew its position in shares of Tesla by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 6,990 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $2,823,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Acropolis Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Tesla by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 2,814 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Tesla by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mount Vernon Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,305 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock worth $2,950,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Finance LLC grew its holdings in Tesla by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 3,510 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $1,417,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. 66.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Tesla Stock Down 3.5 %

NASDAQ:TSLA opened at $263.55 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $321.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $323.01. Tesla, Inc. has a one year low of $138.80 and a one year high of $488.54. The company has a market capitalization of $847.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 129.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 2.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.02.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last posted its quarterly 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Tesla, Inc. will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TSLA. Roth Mkm upgraded shares of Tesla from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $380.00 in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Tesla from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “cautious” rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Glj Research reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Tesla in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Tesla has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $318.34.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 112,390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.04, for a total value of $43,162,255.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 85,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,643,400. This represents a 56.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson sold 100,000 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.63, for a total transaction of $41,163,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,222,802. This represents a 94.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 477,228 shares of company stock valued at $166,849,043. Company insiders own 20.70% of the company’s stock.

Tesla Profile

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.