Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, electric vehicle maker Tesla Motors
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Tesla's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Tesla facts
Headquarters (Founded) |
Palo Alto, Calif. (2003) |
Market Cap |
$2.98 billion |
Industry |
Auto manufacturing |
Trailing-12-Month Revenue |
$145 million |
Management |
Chairman/CEO Elon Musk CFO Deepak Ahuja |
Trailing-12-Month Return on Capital |
(60.8%) |
Cash/Debt |
$100.65 million / $103.18 million |
Competitors |
General Motors
Ford |
Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 53% of the 693 members who have rated Tesla believe the stock will underperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bears include NEALWF and fellow Fool Seth Jayson (TMFBent), who is ranked in the top 0.5% of our community.
Just last week, NEALWF nicely summed up the Tesla bear case:
Major manufacturers on the verge of mass producing electric cars, what is their differentiation? The only shot at identity was their "sports" coupe (how most automotive brands build a name) but they just announced they are discontinuing it? death sentence imo.
Currently, Tesla even trades at a particularly lofty price-to-sales ratio of 21. That represents a massive premium to other auto plays like GM (0.3), Ford (0.4), and Toyota (0.6).
Just last week, Seth offered a rather biting critique of Tesla:
[L]et's see, only went public with the aid of taxpayer money and to give Musk some cash to pursue his playboy lifestyle ... No longer producing the only thing that got the company any interest (the roadster). Entering the market for a sedan that no one really wants, with technology anyone can have. Gone in 5 years.
What do you think about Tesla, or any other stock for that matter? If you want to retire rich, you need to protect your portfolio from any undue risk. Staying away from dangerous stocks is crucial to securing your financial future, and on Motley Fool CAPS, thousands of investors are working every day to flag them. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!