Earnings

Tesla Motors earnings handily beat Street estimates

Tesla has great growth strategy: Pro
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Tesla has great growth strategy: Pro

Tesla Motors reported second-quarter earnings and revenue that beat analysts' expectations on Thursday, on a non-GAAP basis, but it lost more than $61 million on a GAAP basis, sending shares lower in after-hours trading.

The electric car maker posted second-quarter earnings per share of 11 cents, excluding items, compared to 20 cents a share a year ago. Revenue for the quarter came in at $858 million, against the year-ago figure of $552 million.

Wall Street analysts were expecting Tesla to post earnings, excluding items, of 4 cents per share on $811 million in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

On a GAAP basis, Tesla reported a loss $61.9 million, or 50 cents a share, during the quarter, with revenue climbing to $769.3 million.

The California-based firm said it delivered 7,579 Model S vehicles and produced 8,763 of the cars in the second-quarter.

Elon Musk, co-founder and CEO of American electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors, poses with a Tesla during a visit to Amsterdam on January 31, 2014.
Jerry Lampen | AFP | Getty Images

For the current quarter, Tesla plans to produce 9,000 vehicles and said it's on track to deliver 35,000 vehicles during the current year.

Gerber Kawasaki CEO and Tesla shareholder Ross Gerber said Tesla is as an "amazing investment opportunity."

"We need to go to an electric infrastructure for automobiles," Gerber said. "Look at the wars all over the world... the killing over oil. So, Tesla has a great growth strategy when you think about 5 years from now, Tesla's all over the roads."

Earlier, the automaker confirmed a partnership with Japanese electronics firm Panasonic to build its long-planned $5 billion battery factory. The company said it will announce additional partnerships in the coming months.

Tesla beats, shares volatile
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Tesla beats, shares volatile

The company did not, however, announce a site for the so-called Gigafactory, but said it's considering Nevada, California, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas as possible locations, adding that It plans to make a final decision within the next few months.

It also disclosed that it intends to invest between $750 million and $950 million in 2014.

In June, Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced the company would open up all of its patents "for the advancement of electric vehicle technology."

"I thought things would be much further along than they are," Musk said in a June conference call. "We unveiled the roadster in 2007 with a 250-mile battery range, and it has been seven years, and there is no other electric car in production with that range level. That's not great."

—By CNBC's Karma Allen. CNBC's Michelle Fox contributed to this report.