Why Tesla investors should love this version of CEO Elon Musk
Why Tesla investors should love this version of CEO Elon Musk
Brian SozziThu, April 23, 2026 at 11:53 AM UTC
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It's the morning after Tesla's (TSLA) closely watched earnings report, and, as always, it's a bit of a spectacle on social media, with various hot takes on Elon Musk and his electric vehicle/robot/autonomous cab company.
But the bottom line is this: We just witnessed a more reserved billionaire Musk on the earnings call.
Right now, that's not being applauded. The stock is down 3% in premarket trading, as investors wanted the usual bombastic Musk (among other reasons). But it should be.
The Elon Musk we witnessed: The usual Musk gives insane timelines for seemingly insane new projects. The usual Musk takes a few shots at competitors. The usual Musk talks in another language that only high-powered Grok can decipher.
We didn't get the usual Musk, and for that, I say you have to love it.
We got a Musk who pushed back on the reveal date for the next Optimus robot because competitors apparently copy the technology through top-secret analysis out in a bunker somewhere. We got a Musk who was clearly focused on robotaxi safety and talked down the timeline for when these driverless cars could be hailed across the US and Europe. We got a Musk who didn't want to give precise details about the costs to build a Terafab or about which partner would be bearing what costs.
I loved hearing all this pushback to Wall Street, which peppered Musk with lame questions in an effort to figure out revenue 10 years from now.
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A subdued, superfocused Musk is what Tesla investors need in what is arguably the most important moment for the company in years. Deploying driverless cars, making chips, releasing robots out in the wild, building production lines — all of this requires extreme precision and a CEO who is locked in on the details, not predicting when all of it may come together in one explosive quarter that appeases number-crunching sell-side analysts.
To that, I applaud Musk. Give us more of this suit-and-tie-wearing Musk. (Though maybe not too much — I do still enjoy hearing the mind-blowing version of Musk on an earnings call.)
Tesla CEO Elon Musk pictured at the inauguration of President Trump on Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Pool via REUTERS) (via REUTERS / Reuters)
The 4 drivers of Tesla's post-earnings stock decline
The $25 billion capital expenditure guidance for 2025 was a lot for investors to digest, especially as the original guidance was for $20 billion and Tesla spent $8.5 billion last year.
No date was given for the unveiling of the next Optimus robot.
It would appear the robotaxi rollout is moving more slowly than expected.
The energy business underperformed some Wall Street estimates.
First quarter by the numbers: Tesla reported a generally strong first quarter, headlined by its fastest revenue growth in three years. Total revenue rose 16% year over year to $22.39 billion, driven by a resurgence in demand across Europe and Asia. The company significantly outperformed Wall Street expectations on profitability, posting non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.41, above estimates of $0.35.
Analyst quote of the morning: "Caution, caution, everywhere. Musk struck an unfamiliar tone — reserved and cautious—about his usual favorite subjects," William Blair analyst Jed Dorsheimer said.
Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor and a member of Yahoo Finance's editorial leadership team. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
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