Tesla shares close lower on Friday, company to start delivering China-produced Model 3 sedans today

According to a report by Reuters, citing a representative from Tesla Inc, the US electric auto maker is to begin deliveries of Model 3 sedans, manufactured at its factory in Shanghai, today.

Tesla employees will be the first 15 clients to get the sedans delivered on December 30th.

Tesla shares closed lower for the third time in the past ten trading sessions on NASDAQ on Friday. The stock edged down 0.13% ($0.56) to $430.38, after touching an intraday high at $435.05 and also a fresh all-time high.

Shares of Tesla Inc have risen 29.32% so far in 2019 compared with a 38.56% gain for the benchmark index, Nasdaq 100 (NDX).

In 2018, Tesla’s stock went up 6.89%, thus, it outperformed the Nasdaq 100, which registered a 1.04% loss.

The delivery date of December 30th means that vehicle deliveries to customers will begin only 357 days after the Shanghai facility’s construction was initiated. This is expected to be a new record for international car makers in China.

Tesla has priced its China-produced vehicles at CNY 355 800 ($50 000) before subsidies, while it seeks to begin delivering prior to Chinese New Year that starts on January 25th.

Last week, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said that Tesla’s China-made Model 3 cars had been added to a list of new energy vehicles not liable to purchase tax. In August, the ministry had announced that all of Tesla’s other vehicle models had been exempted from purchase tax.

Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation

According to CNN Money, the 29 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Tesla Inc’s stock price, have a median target of $300.00, with a high estimate of $734.00 and a low estimate of $190.00. The median estimate represents a 30.29% downside compared to the closing price of $430.38 on December 27th.

The same media also reported that at least 11 out of 33 surveyed investment analysts had rated Tesla Inc’s stock as “Buy”, while 10 – as “Hold”. On the other hand, 9 analysts had recommended selling the stock.