Tesla (TSLA 1.75%) has long been a polarizing company and stock, but there's no denying that CEO Elon Musk's boldness has produced life-changing investment returns over the years. Now, the company is gearing up for its boldest move yet.
Tesla is transitioning from traditional electric vehicles to autonomous vehicles and humanoid robotics. Elon Musk has firmly stated his belief that Tesla's Optimus robot is the company's future.
Tesla continues to showcase Optimus and its growing capabilities, and another company is already training humanoid robots in factories to perform labor. At this rate, Tesla's Optimus may be useful for some real-world applications as soon as this year. Of course, that's speculation right now.
Is it time to buy the stock now? Before Tesla's big moment and this story goes from speculation to reality?
Image source: Tesla.
Signs of the future happening now
Musk is known for making bold promises, but his insistence on Optimus as Tesla's future isn't ringing hollow. Musk recently announced that Tesla will discontinue legacy models, including the Model S and Model X, to make room for production lines to manufacture Optimus at its Fremont factory.
These models currently account for only a small portion of Tesla's vehicle sales, but it still feels like crossing a threshold. Tesla is genuinely putting its future in Optimus and its Robotaxi ride-hailing service, a future built on artificial intelligence-powered innovation that Musk and Tesla have worked toward for more than a decade now.
Tesla has a ton of upside if the company pulls this off. Experts believe the humanoid robotics market could reach $5 trillion by 2050.
NASDAQ: TSLA
Key Data Points
Time to buy? Consider this first
Clearly, Tesla is a risky stock, even at its $1.4 trillion market value. Tesla's vehicle business has slumped, which Musk seems fine with as the company moves toward launching Optimus and expanding the Robotaxi in the market.
However, investors are paying a significant price to side with Musk and Tesla. Right now, Tesla stock trades at $430 per share. The company just wrapped up its 2025 fiscal year and reported non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings of $1.66 per share. That makes shares very expensive at a whopping 259 times earnings.
Analysts see those earnings growing significantly, with estimates of $2.12 per share this year and $3.00 in 2027. Even still, that's more than 100 times earnings estimates two years out. Tesla has a very loyal shareholder base, and it seems, at the very least, that the stock already reflects much of Tesla's potential upside.
Tesla may need to deliver massively for the stock to reward investors in a short or medium time frame. There could be better opportunities elsewhere in the meantime.
