Wedbush Affirms Outperform on Tesla, $550 Price Target

March 11, 2025 Analyst: Daniel Ives 2 min read Reproduced verbatim

Rating: Outperform; Unchanged
Target: $550
Outcome: Missed; within 12 months

What the analyst said

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives reiterated an Outperform rating and $550 price target on Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA).

“Musk needs to step up as Tesla CEO at this critical juncture.

In a nutshell the word “balance” has been missing with Elon Musk and his ability to run Tesla as CEO….while instead focusing all of his energy and time driving his DOGE initiative within the Trump Administration.

Since Trump’s White House 2nd term kicked off in January we have seen Musk and Trump connected at the hip with Musk essentially living at the White House and Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach.

There has been little to no sign of Musk at any Tesla factory or manufacturing facility the last two months and perception has become reality for Tesla shares.

Trump getting elected President was a huge moment for Musk and Tesla in our view as this will create the fast track for an autonomous federal roadmap…however the DOGE efforts has now intertwined Tesla into this brewing political firestorm.

“Moment of truth” ahead for Musk/Tesla.

The more Musk doubles down on DOGE and the Trump Administration…we have seen more protests erupt at Tesla dealers and violence against Tesla drivers in spots across the US and Europe.

The stock has been under massive pressure down over 50% from its highs in December and Tesla investors are seeing patience wear thin as Musk is not reading the room.

We believe this is a “moment of truth” for Musk and Tesla….if Musk continues to head down the DOGE path 110% and showing no attention to Tesla during this turbulent time then brand damage will become more pervasive as right now our work in the field shows less than 5% (very contained) of Tesla owners would second guess buying a Tesla again due to Musk.

We have been here before with Musk many times over the last decade…and he ultimately stepped up for Tesla shareholders.

While the near-term fundamentals are soft for Tesla and Street numbers for 2025 continue to come down…the medium and long term innovation cycle at Tesla is as bright as its ever been in our view.

This speaks to why this next few months is so critical how Musk navigates the turbulence for the Tesla story.”

Disclaimer
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Where the price stands

This target$550Lowest$24.86Today$358Median$442At the note$222

TSLA trades at $358. The 17 analysts who set a target in the last 3 months range from $24.86 to $500, with a median of $442. This $550 target is 24% above the median, the highest on the Street.

Since the note TSLA has moved +61% (from $222). The 12-month window closed on March 11, 2026.

Track record

This call✗ Not reached within 12 months: a year after the note TSLA closed at $449, 18% below the $550 target, but it moved the way the analyst expected. Same target as this firm’s January 22, 2025 note, so it is scored there.

Firm track recordWedbush: 65% of its 23 targets at least a year old were reached within 12 months (#20 of 26 firms); on Tesla, 2 of 8. Accuracy ranking →