Tesla Stock Rises. 2 Things That Are More Important Than Cars.

Tesla is scheduled to report third-quarter earnings after the closing bell Wednesday. (Photo by RICHARD A. BROOKS/AFP via Getty Images)

Key Points

• Tesla’s stock kicks off the week higher ahead of earnings Wednesday.
• Third-quarter car sales rose by 7% year over year to 497,099 vehicles, contrasting with a 13% decline in the first half of 2025.
• Investors are focused on artificial-intelligence initiatives, including robo-taxi rollout and Cybercab/Optimus production in 2026.

Tesla stock rose Monday, with earnings on deck later this week.

Shares of the electric-vehicle maker gained 1.9% to $447.43, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each added about 1.1%.

The move came despite another proxy advisor, this time Glass Lewis, recommending shareholders vote against Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package. Shareholders will vote between now and early November to decide if Musk should get some 425 million incentive laden stock options. The compensation is unprecedented, but investors have chosen this type of gaudy compensation for Musk in the past. It’s unlikely proxy recommendations will matter.

The Monday move also came with Tesla just days away from reporting third-quarter earnings after Wednesday’s closing bell. “After a brutal few quarters, we are finally starting to see stable demand trends for Tesla,” wrote Wedbush analyst Dan Ives on Sunday.

Tesla sold 497,099 cars in this year’s third quarter, up about 7% year over year. Growth was a relief. In the first six months, Tesla sold about 721,000 cars, down 13% year over year.

Some third-quarter sales were probably pulled forward with car buyers looking to get in ahead of the September expiration of the $7,500 federal EV purchase tax credit.

How car sales are shaping up in the fourth quarter, with no more credit, but new lower-priced “Standard” versions of the Model 3 and Y on sale, certainly will interest investors.

Car sales might take a back seat to artificial intelligence on the earnings conference call, however. Optimus is Tesla’s AI-trained humanoid robot. Cybercab is Tesla’s purpose-built robo-taxi. Investors expect some or both to be sold next year.

“A major focus on the conference call will be the robo-taxi rollout across the U.S. [and] volume production trajectory for Cybercabs/Optimus in 2026,” Ives noted.

“The most important chapter in Tesla’s growth story is now beginning with the AI era now here,” he added. “It starts with autonomous [driving], then robotics.”

Coming into Monday, Tesla stock has risen 99% over the past 12 months. AI has boosted investor sentiment.

Ives rates shares Buy and has a $600 price target, the highest on Wall Street, according to FactSet. The average analyst price target is about $370.

Overall, 45% of analysts covering the stock have a Buy rating. The average Buy-rating ratio for stocks in the S&P 500 is about 55%.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com