Elon Musk’s ‘Master Plan’ For Tesla Fails To Excite Investors

Tesla Inc’s (TSLA.O) shares slipped about 7% on Thursday, after Chief Executive Elon Musk and the team’s close to four-hour presentation failed to charge up investors watching out for an announcement on an affordable electric car.

Musk and more than a dozen executives set out new plans to slash assembly costs by half, invest in a new plant in Mexico, and discussed the company’s innovation in handling its operations at Tesla’s investor day on Wednesday.

However, the event, where Musk unveiled the EV maker’s ‘Master Plan 3’, was lacking details about the timeline for the concepts proposed and any new Tesla products.

“The biggest surprise coming out of Tesla investor day is that there wasn’t a surprise,” Guido Petrelli, founder of Merlin Investor, said.

Tesla’s stock, which had shed about two-thirds of its value last year, has gained more than 60% in 2023.

“The markets were primed for a big announcement, perhaps on something like a more affordable new model… It may just have been a case of failing to live up to the hype,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

“Musk’s Master Plan 3 was more a message of hope for widespread electrification than a roadmap for Tesla,” Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi said, describing the event as “somewhat disjointed and fairly technical.”

Tesla’s events have made a stir on the internet in the past, with Musk’s dance moves at the opening of the firm’s Berlin plant last year and an event in China in 2020 going viral on social media.

The company’s plan to use 75% less silicon carbide vehicles without ruining the performance or the efficiency of the vehicles also weighed on semiconductor makers and suppliers Wolfspeed Inc (WOLF.N) and STMicroelectronics (STM.PA).

The reduction plan is “bad news for the whole silicon carbide production chain and in particular for STMicro,” brokerage Equita said.