Tesla (TSLA 3.49%) closed down 8.2% at $305.30 on Thursday, retreating sharply after CEO Elon Musk's cautionary earnings commentary about "rough quarters ahead" amid macroeconomic and electric vehicle (EV) demand uncertainties.
The decline stood in contrast to broader market performance, with the Nasdaq Composite gaining 0.18% and the S&P 500 advancing 0.07%, highlighting company-specific headwinds rather than sectorwide weakness. Electric vehicle peers also declined but to a lesser extent, with Rivian (RIVN 1.30%) falling 1.43% to $13.82 and Lucid Group (LCID -2.34%) dropping 2.92% to $2.99, suggesting broader risk sensitivity within the EV sector while confirming Tesla's movement was the most sentiment-driven.
Trading volume reached approximately 154 million shares, roughly 1.4 times the 200-day average of 109 million shares, indicating active institutional repositioning rather than passive selling. The elevated volume combined with the substantial price decline signals deliberate investor response to forward guidance concerns, highlighting near-term skepticism despite continued longer-term interest in electric vehicle growth prospects.
