Tesla shares close lower on Friday, company postpones start of Model S Plaid delivery until June 10th

Tesla Inc’s Chief Executive Elon Musk said in a tweet over the weekend that deliveries of the Model S Plaid vehicle would be postponed until June 10th, since the car requires ”one more week of tweak.”

The Model S Plaid was showcased as part of Tesla’s Battery Day presentation in September 2020, while the company tested a prototype of the vehicle at the Laguna Seca raceway in 2019.

According to Musk, Model S Plaid is capable of accelerating to 60 miles per hour in less than 2 seconds and it can reach a top speed of up to 200 miles per hour.

According to current specifications posted on the auto maker’s website, its Model S Plaid will have a driving range of 390 to 412 miles, while another version of the vehicle, Model S Plaid Plus, will have a larger range – over 520 miles.

The starting purchase price of Model S Plaid is $119,990, while that of Model S Plaid Plus – $149,990, Tesla said.

Tesla shares closed lower for the fifth time in the past ten trading sessions on NASDAQ on Friday. The stock went down 0.89% ($5.63) to $625.22, after touching an intraday high at $635.59, or a price level not seen since May 10th ($664.79).

Shares of Tesla Inc have retreated 11.40% so far in 2021 compared with an 11.93% gain for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).

In 2020, Tesla Inc’s stock went up 743.40%, thus, it outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 16.26% gain.

Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation

According to CNN Money, at least 14 out of 37 surveyed investment analysts had rated Tesla Inc’s stock as “Buy”, while 13 – as “Hold”. The median price target on the stock stands at $727.50.