One analyst has laid out his top 10 priorities for a Tesla turnaround next year. Priority No. 1? "Name a CEO of Twitter by the end of January."
www.marketwatch.com
A new Twitter CEO, and 9 other things Elon Musk should do to revive Tesla investors’ faith in stock, according to an analyst
(Dan Ives)
Priority No. 1? “Name a CEO of Twitter by the end of January.”
Priority No. 2, Ives said, was: “Stop selling stock and no more boy that cried wolf or Pinocchio situation.”
Priority No. 3 involves cutting back on Musk’s typically aggressive growth forecasts for Tesla. “Lay out conservative 2023 delivery and targets given the darker macro,” he wrote. “The 50% growth target is not happening in our opinion, with 35%+ delivery growth a more hittable and realistic goal for 2023.”
No. 4 on that list called for greater attention on Tesla, rather than Twitter
No. 5 called for announcing Cybertruck deliveries will begin by the end of next year, amid concerns about competition and production
No. 6 called for changes to Tesla’s board to add more people with experience in tech and electric vehicles.
No. 7: A big share buyback.
No. 8: More financial metrics and “transparency” around margins.
Amazingly, the number in the headlines does not match what he number in the article.
Edit: rearranged link to make sure people didn’t think these were my opinions.
There's some overlap between that list and what I'd like to see for Tesla / TSLA in 2023. Walking thru his list:
1. Agreed with the caveat that while virtually any unnamed new CEO could be good, a few names could certainly be even more detrimental than Mr. Musk retaining that role.
2. Hopefully this is already a "done deal" and we shall see no such forms for 2023 as per Mr. Musk's verbal statement recently. This and #5 are the two I give the greatest likelihood of occurring.
3. I am personally very OK with Tesla's evolution over the past year, from being very certain of > 50% growth in 2022 12 months ago to progressively more cautious language around the annual 50% goal as each quarter went from forecast to actuals. Tesla (and perhaps all of us) *should* set very aggressive goals and strive to achieve them, even if we know we may fall short. I would like to see Tesla maintain its aspirational goal of 50% while being a bit more open that 40% - 45% is more realistic under current circumstances and *still* quite incredible growth.
4. This would be best-case scenario, but barring that, perhaps handing over the CEO title. No shortage of qualified top talent within Tesla already, although the one name most recently discussed would be quite problematic IMHO.
5. This is already a done deal, but yes, more discussion of timing, etc for it would be very appreciated and welcomed by the market and those of us who have reservations. This and #2 are the two I give the greatest likelihood of coming true.
6. I would actually be a fan of expanding the board, if for no other reason than to increase the % of truly independent directors. They need not have deep experience in either tech or EVs, as those are already Tesla strengths; rather, new independent directors should bring strengths to support areas Tesla is less strong in already.
7. Tesla should definitely begin a buyback program, but it doesn't need to be a major one. Minimum should be the greater of A) total new share options granted each quarter or B) total share options exercised each quarter. Maximum should be the lesser of C) net revenue for each quarter or D) net free cash flow each quarter. I'll leave it to the board / executive management to decide where between those min / max points would be most optimal each quarter.
8. Additional transparency in corporate governance and accounting is always welcomed. In particular, clarity around Tesla's Chinese subsidiary's financials, current balance sheet (separate from overall corporate balance sheet), and whether the lease for the factory land includes any restrictions on repatriating the profits outside China (yes, a great deal can be indirectly repatriated via paying suppliers in China from these profits and shipping the purchased goods to the factories in the US or Europe, but a clear picture of this would remove some concern).
More interestingly IMHO - what other ideas do we collectively have here as to what Mr. Musk or Tesla could to revive investor confidence in TSLA (beyond those here who never lose faith to need revived)? Certainly the board and executive leadership have access to a great deal of information that we outside the company do not possess, but presumably we have some ideas (or at least asks for information for us to develop ideas so we can trust Tesla has it under control confidently rather than blindly). Thoughts everyone?
