Tesla's revenue exceeded $10 billion for the fourth consecutive quarter and net income exceeded $1 billion for the second consecutive quarter.
(Photo source: CnEVPost)
Tesla delivered record earnings in the third quarter despite chip shortages affecting major global car companies as well as star startups.
The company's earnings report, released after the US stock market closed on Wednesday, showed it posted record revenue of $13.757 billion in the third quarter, up 57 percent from a year earlier and above the $13.63 billion expected by analysts according to Refinitiv.
It was also the fourth consecutive quarter that Tesla's revenue exceeded $10 billion.
The company reported a record GAAP net income of $1.62 billion in the third quarter, up 389 percent year-on-year, and the second time in its history that it exceeded $1 billion, beating market expectations of $1.3 billion.
Tesla's automotive business generated $12.06 billion in revenue in the third quarter, and the company also earned $806 million in revenue from its energy business in the quarter.
Its services and other businesses contributed $894 million in revenue, including auto maintenance and repair, and auto insurance.
Despite suffering from parts shortages, Tesla still delivered 241,391 vehicles in the third quarter, up about 73 percent from the same period a year earlier. The company produced 237,823 vehicles in the third quarter.
The Model 3 and Model Y were the main sales drivers, with 232,102 units delivered in the third quarter. The company also delivered 9,289 Model S and Model X units.
Tesla expects to deliver nearly 900,000 vehicles for the full year in 2021, and it is aiming to increase deliveries by more than 50 percent over last year's nearly 500,000 units.
Tesla said challenges such as semiconductor shortages and port congestion have limited its ability to produce at full speed.
Tesla mentioned that in the third quarter, China remained its main export center. Production at Giga Shanghai is growing well, and the company is driving improvements to further increase productivity.
For standard-mileage vehicles, Tesla is moving globally to lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, the company said.
Tesla mentioned that the 4680 battery program continues to make progress and is producing more and more battery packs for testing purposes.
The company's business outlook is essentially the same as that announced in its second-quarter earnings report, promising to increase manufacturing capacity as soon as possible and reaffirming a commitment it has held since January of this year to achieve an average annual growth rate of 50 percent in vehicle deliveries over the next few years.
However, Tesla warned that the growth rate will depend on equipment capacity, operational efficiency and the capacity and stability of the supply chain.
