What happened
Shares of electric-car company Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) jumped on Tuesday, rising as much as 8.5%. As of 11:34 a.m. EST, however, this sharp rise had moderated to a gain of 2.8%.
The stock's rise today follows an analyst's decision to upgrade his rating on the electric-car maker's stock from market perform to outperform.
A Tesla Model 3. Image source: Tesla.
So what
In addition to giving the stock an outperform rating, JMP Securities analyst Joseph Osha set a 12-month $1,060 price target for the stock. The recent market sell-off due to fears about the impact of the coronavirus have weighed on Tesla stock and created a buying opportunity for investors, Osha argues.
The analyst added that current electric vehicle offerings from other automakers suggest Tesla's lead over the competition will remain dominant in the nascent market.
So what
Tesla recently reported record fourth-quarter results and guided for vehicle deliveries in 2020 to grow more than 35% year over year -- and that's on top of 50% growth in deliveries last year.
Investors should keep in mind that Tesla will have to deliver more strong growth for years to come in order to live up to not only JMP's $1,060 price target but also the current stock price.
