Requests for potential retroactive rebates drop Tesla on the stock market

(Reuters) – Tesla loses more than 4% Monday on Wall Street after a news press release that the manufacturer of electric cars has asked suppliers to return a portion of the sums received since 2016 to support a profitability undermined by its production objectives.

The title loses 4.48% to 299.54 dollars around 15:30 GMT on the Nasdaq, after sinking to 292.86 in the first exchanges.

The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that the manufacturer of Silicon Valley, which will publish its quarterly results on August 1, had asked some of its suppliers to pay him a portion of the money collected.

The document quoted by the newspaper was sent by a supply chain manager. The demand is described as essential for the continuation of Tesla's activities and is described as an investment in the group to ensure the long-term growth of activities between all the players concerned.

No one at Tesla was available immediately, but the group confirmed, according to the WSJ, seeking price reductions for its projects, some dating back to 2016.

The founder and CEO of the Elon Musk group said in a tweet: "Only costs that actually apply in the third quarter and beyond will be counted." It would not be correct to apply old cost savings over the current quarter. "

"Automobile manufacturers often have brutal price demands on their suppliers for their upcoming productions, but it's rare to hear about retroactive discounts and that's what worries us," writes in a note David Whiston, badyst at Morningstar.

Tesla has burned a lot of cash to increase the production of its Model 3 sedan and some badysts believe that the manufacturer will not escape a capital increase this year, an option excluded by Elon Musk.

Tesla had $ 3.2 billion in cash as of March 31, after spending about $ 1 billion in the first quarter.

While the WSJ reported that the note said that all suppliers were invited to contribute to the profitability of the group, some of them, contacted by him, said they were not aware of such a request. .

"This is a further sign that the reserves are shrinking and I am confident that Tesla will need fresh money no later than next year," Judge Frank Schwope, an badyst at Nord / LB.

Tesla, which reported a loss of $ 709.6 million in the first three months of 2018, claims it will be profitable in the third and fourth quarters.

In June, the company announced the elimination of several thousand jobs to reduce costs and improve profitability without compromising the ramp-up of Model 3 production.

The title, stable since January 1, has lost 16% since its high of 2018 reached June 18 at 373.73 dollars.

(Vibhuti Sharma, Catherine Mallebay-Vacator for French Service, edited by Véronique Tison)