Editor’s Note: Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:TM)
Tesla’s Musk channels Iacocca with hastened US reimbursement (SDDT)
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)‘s Elon Musk is poised to follow in the footsteps of Lee Iacocca, who 30 years ago as Chrysler Corp.’s chief executive officer retired a controversial U.S. obligation years early. Musk, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s CEO and co-founder, Friday expanded the size of equity and debt offerings by 30 percent to as much as $1.08 billion to boost its cash reserves and repay a $465 million Energy Department loan nine years ahead of schedule. Iacocca in 1983 paid Chrysler’s U.S. loan guarantees seven years early.
Tesla a risky way to play electric car trend (TheGlobeAndMail)
The denouement of the short sellers betting against Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been awesome to witness. The shares have nearly tripled since the beginning of the year, and vaulted up in nearly vertical fashion last week to nearly $95, as the shorts, facing the prospect of unlimited losses, capitulated by purchasing stock and closing out their positions. But the story of Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s dramatic rise has more implications, in my view, than just the financial pain it inflicted on the hapless short sellers.
Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) To Make Major Supercharger Announcement (Pulse2)
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been having a very great month. The company raised $1 billion in new capital after issuing more shares. The company also reported their first profitable quarter and outsold their German luxury counterparts. On Monday May 13, the company’s stock was trading at about $80 per share and it closed on Friday at $91.50 with a market cap of about $10.57 billion. So what’s next on deck? Superchargers! On Tuesday May 14th, Musk wrote a tweet saying “supercharger announcement pushed to next week. Something else this week.”
Tesla Motors Inc : Tesla Stock, Note Sales Draw Strong Demand (4-Traders)
The sale by Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) of more than $1 billion worth of stock and convertible-debt saw strong demand from long-term investors, people familiar with the deal say, showing that more than just short-term traders are helping fuel the steep rise in the company’s shares. The success of the offering, which saw Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s shares rise even after it announced the deal, was also seen as an indication that investors may be warming to some clean-technology companies after widely shunning most such stocks since the financial crisis.
Tesla’s fight with America’s car dealers (CNN)
Both sides insist they’re only trying to protect car buyers. What Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and its chief executive Elon Musk want to do is to sell its Model S electric sedan directly to consumers rather than using franchised car dealers. General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:TM) and others don’t sell cars to customers. They sell cars to independently owned and operated dealers or distributors who, in turn, sell them to the public, usually after some negotiation over the final price. It’s a system that dates back to the Model T. By contrast, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’s showrooms, of which there are already 37 around the country, are owned and operated by Tesla Motors. Most of the showrooms are in shopping malls with only enough cars kept in inventory for display and for test drives. Also, there’s no haggling. Every Tesla car sells at full sticker price. Service on the cars is performed at separate garages, also owned by Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA).
Changing face of Silicon Valley (IndiaTimes)
In a busy factory, machinists move sheets of aluminum roll in the back door to be molded, stamped, twisted and notched into high-tech electric cars that sell for more than $60,000 each. …From Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), making cutting-edge cars, to Solaria, making solar panels, manufacturers are drawn to Fremont by incentives including a five-year waiver on business taxes, an expedited regulatory process, proximity to Silicon Valley firms and a skilled labor force.
Tesla Motors raises more than $1bn from debt, equity (BusinessSpectator)
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has upsized its debt and equity offerings, as the electric car maker capitalises on surging investor demand to raise more than $1 billion in cash. The US company late Thursday increased the size of the convertible bond offering to $600 million, after increasing it earlier that day to $525 million from an initial $450 million. Meanwhile on Friday Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) finalised a per share price of $92.24 for the sale of 3.39 million common stock shares. It had originally planned to offer 2.7 million shares. With overallotment options included on both offerings, total fundraising is $1.02 billion.
Three Cheers for Tesla (PowerLineBlog)
I have always been skeptical of electric vehicles, mostly because of my perception that electric car makers are more interested in subsisting on government subsidies than in competing on a level playing field for my business. So I was intrigued when I got an email this morning from Jeff Evanson, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA)’ Vice-President of investor relations. Evanson, a long-time Power Line reader, pointed out that the company raised over $1 billion last week, and will use a portion of those proceeds to pay off its loan with the Department of Energy ahead of schedule. This will make Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) the only US-based auto maker with no government debt.
