Tesla shares near a record for the first time in a year after Musk's words about robotaxis

Tesla shares rose 3.5% in trading on December 15, with the session seeing them approach a new record for the first time since last December. The reason - Elon Musk confirmed that the company is testing robotaxis without test drivers, ready to take control at any time. Investors are betting on the company's technologies in the field of autonomous driving and artificial intelligence: this now largely explains the capitalization of $1.5 trillion, with sales of electric cars declining for the second year in a row, analysts say.

Tesla shares were up 4.9% to $481.77 at the moment in Monday trading. This is the maximum price since December 18, 2024. By the end of trading, however, the price had fallen slightly and amounted to $475.31 at the close. Tesla's capitalization now stands at about $1.5 trillion - that's twice as much as 12 other major global automakers combined, Barron's notes.

The impetus for the growth was a message from CEO Elon Musk in social network X: Tesla is testing a robotaxi "without people in the car," writes Barron's. The company launched its artificial intelligence-powered robotaxi service in June in Austin, Texas, but so far a human is sitting in the front passenger seat, monitoring traffic and ready to intervene if necessary, Barron's noted. In October, Musk said he hoped to remove insurance drivers by the end of the year, Reuters reported.

"The news that Tesla is testing robotaxis without insurance drivers is in line with our expectations of progress in testing," Morningstar senior analyst Seth Goldstein said, as quoted by Reuters. - The market is welcoming the progress, sending the stock higher."

Robotaxis and artificial intelligence are two reasons why 2026 will be a pivotal year for Tesla, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives noted in a Barrons note. Ives maintains a Buy rating and a $600 target price for the company's stock, which corresponds to a company-wide valuation of about $2 trillion. Ives' outlook is the highest on Wall Street, Barron's noted.

"Tesla and Musk have a monster year ahead as the chapter on autonomous technology and robotics begins," the analyst wrote. - "Wall Street is at a crossroads with Tesla as bulls and bears debate how quickly the robotaxi era will take shape."

Ives expects Tesla to rapidly expand robotaxis across the U.S. thanks in part to the start of production of its Cybercab unmanned car in the spring. "Tesla is taking important steps in advancing its AI revolution path with autonomous cars and robotics at the center of its focus," the analyst added.

Ives' optimism on Wall Street is not shared by everyone. Only 40% of analysts gave the securities a Buy rating, while the average for the S&P 500 is 55%, Barron's writes, citing FactSet. The average target price is around $400, which is below current quotes, and forecasts range from $120 to $600.

"Tesla shares are trading as much on sentiment as they are on fundamentals, with the underlying business playing second fiddle to the AI that underpins the trillion-dollar valuation," Matt Britzman, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, was quoted by Bloomberg as saying.

Tesla sales are falling almost worldwide: in 2025 they may decline for the second year in a row, writes Barron's. Third-quarter results disappointed investors as rising costs offset the effect of record sales driven by a rush to buy electric cars before the expiration of the $7500 tax credit, Bloomberg notes.

"Tesla is in bubble territory," Irene Tankel, chief U.S. equity strategist at BCA Research, said in a Bloomberg statement.

Although Tesla's $1.53 trillion capitalization is largely due to optimism about autonomous driving and robots, so far the bulk of the company's revenue still comes from the sale of electric cars, Reuters points out.

Waymo (a division of Google) now leads the robotaxi market in the US with more than 2,500 commercial robotaxis in major cities. It has surpassed the mark of 450,000 paid robotaxi rides per week, CNBC wrote, citing a letter from the Tiger Global fund. Waymo is one of its largest positions, the channel added.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor