Tesla’s document gross sales quarter barely boosted revenue

Tesla delivered a document variety of autos within the third quarter of 2025, thanks largely to a rush of consumers in america who took benefit of the expiring federal EV tax credit score. However that document quarter didn’t result in better earnings. In truth, Tesla’s third-quarter revenue was nonetheless 37% decrease than it was in the identical quarter final 12 months.

Tesla shipped 497,099 automobiles within the third quarter, which generated $21.2 billion in income — the corporate’s greatest income determine in additional than a 12 months. However Tesla solely pulled in a revenue of $1.4 billion, up simply $200 million from the second quarter of this 12 months, in line with a shareholder letter released Wednesday.

The corporate defined within the letter {that a} massive improve in working bills — 50% larger in comparison with the third quarter final 12 months — was one of many culprits. That OpEx bump was due to spending on AI and different R&D initiatives, in addition to “restructuring” fees of practically $240 million. Tesla didn’t clarify what these restructuring fees have been for, but it surely’s presumably associated to the latest choice to close down the corporate’s six-year Dojo supercomputer venture.

This may put much more stress on the corporate’s remaining quarter of the 12 months.

Tesla already wants one other document quarter (after which some) if it desires to easily match the variety of automobiles it shipped in 2024 or 2023. The corporate may get some assist from the brand new slightly-cheaper stripped-down variations of the Mannequin 3 and Mannequin Y EVs. However even in that best-case situation, Tesla is approach off the trail of fifty% year-over-year development that it as soon as promised to buyers and shareholders.

All of that is occurring amid the backdrop of Tesla’s proposal handy $1 trillion price of shares to CEO Elon Musk. That plan is up for a vote on the firm’s annual shareholder assembly in a couple of weeks. The corporate — and Musk — are campaigning exhausting. Whereas advisor teams like ISS and Glass Lewis are recommending towards the pay bundle, it’s almost definitely going to move given the overwhelming help from shareholders on earlier efforts.

That hasn’t stopped Musk from threatening to stroll away from Tesla if the package isn’t approved.