• Compensation: Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, goes from earning 2.1 billion to 22,000 euros

Tesla managed to close the first quarter of the year with benefits for the first time in the company's history. And they are already three consecutive in positive. Even with the coronavirus crisis in between, the electric vehicle company's profit was $ 16 million compared to $ 702 million loss in the same quarter a year ago, an 85% improvement. Tesla also pulled out chest by records on his traditional Achilles heel, production. Its capacity, between its plant in Fremont (California) and that of Shanghai, will reach 690,000 vehicles "in the middle of the year", a figure that could be close to 800,000 by the end of 2020.

In the same statement, the company led by Elon Musk announced that Model Y, the brand's hybrid, began to be distributed much earlier than expected and to contribute to the company's benefits from the beginning, another unprecedented fact. "It is the first time in our history that a new product has been profitable in its first quarter," they explained in a shareholder report presented at the close of Wall Street.

Their shares reacted strongly in the after hours market , with more than 10% appreciation after another positive trading day. He managed to regain the $ 800 barrier after closing another 4%.

In the chapter of deliveries, the Model 3, the most affordable price in the entire fleet, was again its flagship product with 76,266 cars dispatched from the total of 88,496 in the first quarter. In this regard, the increase was 40% compared to the same date in 2019, when the volume of deliveries was 63,019. Its two traditional models, the S and the X, barely experienced growth. 139 more vehicles were delivered than a year ago.

The flip side of the coin was negative cash flow of $ 895 million during the quarter, which will undoubtedly complicate your goal of being positive in that chapter before the end of the year. Tesla admitted that despite good financial data, the level of deliveries and production was seriously affected by the closure of factories following the worldwide Covid-19 outbreak.

His vision for the next quarter remains uncertain. The good health of their accounts will depend to a great extent on the speed with which they manage to reinstate all the workers to the plants. The main one, Fremont's, has been operating at lows since March 24, mandated by Alameda County health authorities east of San Francisco Bay.

Tesla also had to suspend battery production at the factory outside of Reno, Nevada, and its battery, charging station and component manufacturing facility in Buffalo, New York. Still, he managed to add 1,917 superchargers to his inventory, the highest number in the last five quarters.

The production of solar panels is not bad either. They have already managed to exceed 1,000 units per week, one of Musk's future investments and his green ambition. That chapter, added to the automaker, contributed to Tesla entering 5,985 million dollars in the first three months of the year, 32% more than in early 2019.

The one that will have to wait is the brand's truck, the Semi. Production has been delayed until 2021, when the first deliveries are planned. Where there has been progress is in the autonomy of its most expensive models, the S and X. They will have 625 and 561 kilometers of travel per charge, respectively, thanks to a new battery the same size as current models.

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