What happened
Shares of Tesla (TSLA 0.18%) moved higher on Tuesday, recovering some of the growth stock's sharp decline last week. Shares rose as much as 4.3% but were up 2.9% as of 11:40 a.m. EST.
The bullish day for the electric vehicle (EV) maker's stock is likely largely driven by an upbeat day in the overall market. But the move could also reflect some opportunistic buying following the stock's recent pullback.
Model S. Image source: Tesla.
So what
Capturing a bullish day on the Street, the S&P 500 was up more than a half percent as of midday. But some growth stocks like Tesla were up more than a percent. This market momentum likely helped Tesla stock, which is a member of the market-capitalization-weighted S&P 500 index.
Tesla shares may also simply be rebounding from a more than 15% decline last week. Shares of the automaker have been pummeled as founder and CEO Elon Musk has made headlines about selling shares of the company as part of a plan to unload 10% of his stake in Tesla.
Now what
It's not surprising to see some support for the stock after its recent decline. The company's momentum lately has been staggering, with third-quarter deliveries growing 73% year over year. This led to a 57% year-over-year jump in profit and a 389% increase in net income.
Demand for electric vehicles seems to be hitting a tipping point, management indicated in Tesla's third-quarter update: "We believe the more vehicles we have on the road, the more Tesla owners are able to spread the word about the benefits of EVs."
