What happened
Shares of electric-car company Tesla (TSLA 1.85%) took a hit on Thursday, falling as much as 7.8%. As of 11:36 a.m. EDT, the stock was down 6.6%.
The stock's decline follows Tesla's third-quarter update on vehicle production and deliveries. Shares are likely down because deliveries were below analysts' average forecast for the period.
Model 3. Image source: Tesla.
So what
Tesla said it delivered a record 97,000 vehicles in its third quarter. This was up from the company's previous quarterly record, which was set in the second quarter of 2019, of 95,356 vehicles. But it was below what analysts were looking for. On average, analysts were expecting Tesla to deliver 99,000 vehicles during the period.
Total vehicle deliveries were up 16% year over year. Model 3 deliveries continued to drive Tesla's growth, accounting for 82% of the quarter's deliveries.
Management said it produced a record 96,155 vehicles during the period, up from 87,048 vehicles in Q2.
Now what
Demand for the company's vehicles remains strong, with Tesla's order backlog higher going into Q4 than it was going into Q3. In addition, management said most of its Model 3 orders are coming from customers who didn't previously have a reservation, "solidifying the transition to generating strong organic demand."
In Q4, Tesla said it will focus on increasing production to meet higher demand.
