Over the past few months, SpaceX (SPCX) has hogged so much of the limelight that Elon Musk's “other” company, Tesla (TSLA), has slipped completely under the radar. Yet, the EV leader is looking to go back to the past to grow in the future.
An event scheduled for Oct. 1 is expected to provide a major glimpse into the second-generation Roadster—a car that the company sold between 2008 and 2012 and was the one that put it on the automobile map of the world. Described as the company's first production vehicle and built with a Lotus Elise Chassis, the Roadster offered things that no other electric vehicle did at that time. 0-60 mph in 39 seconds, had a top speed of 120 mph, and an initial range of 200+ miles, which eventually rose to 245.
More Top Stocks Daily: Go behind Wall Street’s hottest headlines with Barchart’s Active Investor newsletter.
Innovation was also offered in terms of the battery, as the Roadster used thousands of cylindrical lithium-ion cells arranged into a sophisticated battery pack with monitoring and thermal-management systems.
www.barchart.com What to Expect From the 2026 Roadster?
The new Roadster's prototype was first unveiled in 2017. It has taken almost a decade for its official showcasing to the world. However, if the claims are to be believed, the wait may be worth it.
It is expected that the second-generation Roadster will go from 0 to 60 mph in 1.9 seconds, have a top speed that exceeds 250 mph, and have a range of 620 miles. Expected to be priced between $200,000 and $250,000, the vehicle will be a four-seater and have three motors powering it. Another notable feature of the EV is the 8.8-second quarter-mile time, which would put the Roadster firmly into hypercar/drag-racing territory, rather than merely being a very fast sports car.
SpaceX is also involved, with the reveal set to be held at the company's test facility in McGregor, Texas. However, SpaceX's involvement will not be limited to just that. CEO Elon Musk has proposed a SpaceX package involving cold-gas thrusters that would provide additional thrust. The concept has been described as potentially improving acceleration, braking, and cornering, with Musk even talking about the possibility of the car briefly “hovering.”
However, Tesla should not expect the demand to go through the roof. Yes, an initial burst may be experienced due to the strong brand pull of the company and from nostalgia buffs with very deep pockets, but the vehicle is premium. Even the base variant at $200,000 would be more than 4x the average new car transaction price for U.S. consumers and 2.5x the U.S. median household income of just above $80,000.
Yet, this audience may not be the target market at all for the new Roadster. It will be the premium segment, and here the Roadster is actually competitively priced when compared to other EVs in the market. While the Taycan Turbo S and Turbo GT are priced at $221,400 and $243,700, respectively, Lucid's (LCID) Air Sapphire at $249,000 is in the range where the Founder Series of the Roadster is forecasted to be priced at ($250,000).
Investors Wanted More From Q2
Tesla reported total revenue of $28.2 billion in the second quarter, marking a 26% increase year-over-year (YoY) and beating estimates by more than $2.5 billion. Automotive revenue, the primary segment, rose 23% to $20.5 billion. Services revenue expanded 50% to $4.6 billion, while the energy business grew 13% to $3.1 billion.
Earnings per share fell 18% to $0.33, coming in below the consensus estimate of $0.53. Gross margins narrowed slightly to 16.8% from 17.2% in the year-earlier period. Operating expenses climbed to $4.3 billion from $2.9 billion, largely reflecting a 50% YoY increase in research and development costs that could support future growth.
Operating cash flow totaled $4.7 billion, representing an 85% gain from the previous year. Free cash flow, however, turned negative at $1.1 billion, a development that stands out given Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja’s confirmation that capital expenditures will exceed $25 billion in 2026. The company closed the quarter with $43.5 billion in cash, well above its short-term debt of $1.4 billion.
Deliveries reached 480,126 vehicles, up 25% YoY and surpassing the consensus projection of 406,000. Production rose 10% to 451,758 units, and Full Self-Driving (FSD) subscriptions increased 56% to 1.48 million.
Energy storage deployment grew to 13.5 GWh from 9.6 GWh in the second quarter of 2025. Supercharger stations and connectors, key components of the energy network, advanced 18% and 17%, respectively, to 8,704 stations and 82,357 connectors.
Despite these operational results, TSLA shares continue to trade at elevated valuation levels. The forward P/E, P/S, and P/CF of 206.60, 13.60, and 89.19 are all above the sector medians of 15.11, 0.86, and 9.71, respectively.
TSLA stock is down 19% year-to-date (YTD), and its market cap is now at $1.4 trillion.
Analyst Opinion on TSLA Stock
Overall, analysts have assigned a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating to TSLA stock. The mean target price of $398.17 suggests a potential upside of 9% from current levels. Of the 42 analysts covering the stock, 15 rate it a “Strong Buy,” two a “Moderate Buy,” 20 a “Hold,” and five are bearish with a “Strong Sell” rating.
www.barchart.com On the date of publication, Pathikrit Bose did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
More news from Barchart
Dear Tesla Stock Fans, Mark Your Calendars for October 1 How I’m Using This Great Barchart Stock Screener to Feel Like the ‘Dr. J’ of Trading If You Missed the Nancy Pelosi Rally, Here’s the Case for Buying Bloom Energy Stock Now ’AI Not Worth Pursuing’ If It’s Not ‘Helping Humanity.’ Microsoft’s Satya Nadella Pushes Back on Anthropic’s Control Framing and Offers a Practical Way Out.