Valuentum Exclusive Analysis for the Discerning Investor

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Oct 23, 2024

Tesla’s Margins, Free Cash Flow Swell in Third Quarter
Image: Tesla has returned to a free cash flow rich entity. Tesla reported solid third quarter results that showed a business that is getting back on track. Not only did production and deliveries increase nicely on a year-over-year basis, but the firm’s margin improvement is a sight to see and comes in the wake of lowered vehicle selling prices. Tesla also showcased its cash generation capacity in the quarter, with free cash flow more than tripling. We like Tesla’s net-cash-rich balance sheet, its free cash flow generation, and its ability to drive growth, but we fall short of including shares in any newsletter portfolio.

Jul 6, 2024

Tesla’s Deliveries Bounce Back in Second Quarter
Source: Tesla. On July 2, Tesla released its production and delivery numbers for the second quarter of 2024. Production of Model 3/Y and other models totaled 410,831, while total deliveries came in at 443,956 units, consisting of 422,405 Model 3/Y and the balance coming from other models. The results were better than expected and helped to propel shares of the electric-vehicle maker higher. Tesla’s equity has shot up past the high end of our fair value estimate range, and while we liked the better-than-feared news regarding its deliveries, we continue to be on the sidelines with respect to Tesla’s shares. The next big catalysts for Tesla’s shares are its earnings release on July 23 and its robotaxi event on August 8. The high end of our fair value estimate range stands at $224, shy of where the company’s equity is trading ($250+).

Sep 20, 2022

Should You Gear Up for the Porsche AG IPO?
Image Shown: Unit sales at Porsche fell 5% during the first half of 2022, but demand remains particularly strong for its SUV models despite a troubled supply chain and higher input cost inflation. Image Source: Porsche AG. German luxury and sports car maker Porsche AG is planning to go public in the coming weeks, following in the footsteps of Ferrari, which listed a few years ago. Porsche-owner Volkswagen AG has been investing heavily in electric vehicles, and the IPO of the Porsche brand will provide it with fresh capital to be more competitive on that front.

Jun 30, 2022

Big Changes in the Auto Industry as Chip Shortages, Supply Chain Issues, and Rising Input Costs Complicate Matters; Tesla and Ferrari Our Two Favorite Names
Image: Ferrari’s fundamental momentum has been strong of late. Image Source: Ferrari N.V. 2022 Globe Newswire. The auto industry perhaps has changed more than any other industry the past five years. First, it was Ford that said it wouldn’t make passenger cars anymore, except for its iconic Mustang. Then, the European Union said that it would eventually end the internal combustion engine (ICE) by 2035. Then, Tesla reached over $1,200 per share and over a $1 trillion market capitalization. Can you imagine a world where Ford is not making sedans, the once modern-marvel of the internal combustion engine is dying, and where one car maker is worth as much as the next nine car makers combined? Certainly, a lot has changed in the auto industry during the past decade, and we haven’t dabbled much in the auto sector as it relates to idea generation due in part to the industry’s fast-changing backdrop. That doesn’t mean that we’re not fans of the auto space and its promising long-term opportunities, particularly with electric vehicles (EVs). It just means that we think there are better stories elsewhere, as in ideas in the simulated newsletter portfolios. However, if we had to pick two of our favorite auto names to consider, they would be Tesla and Ferrari, even as we note General Motors and Ford both trade at mid-single-digit earnings multiples. That said, investors don’t necessarily have to take on the risks of automakers, especially as the group deals with chip shortages, supply chain issues, and margin pressures from higher input costs. The cyclicality of many of the operators and the reality that operating leverage cuts both ways (and is quite painful during difficult economic times) are risks that perhaps won’t ever go away. That said, exposure to the auto space via Tesla or Ferrari could work nicely in a broadly diversified equity portfolio should risk-seeking investors be so inclined. These two names remain on our radar.

Jan 27, 2022

Net Cash Rich Tesla Reports Solid Free Cash Flow, Closes Out 2021 on a High Note
Image Shown: A look at Tesla Inc’s new ‘Gigafactory’ manufacturing facility in Austin, Texas, that is currently under development. Image Source: Tesla Inc – Fourth Quarter of 2021 IR Shareholder Deck. On January 26, Tesla reported that it had produced ~306,000 vehicles and delivered ~309,000 vehicles during the final quarter of 2021. The electric vehicle (‘EV’) and battery maker beat both consensus top- and bottom-line estimates in the fourth quarter as it continued to successfully ramp its production capabilities. We plan to fine-tune our cash flow valuation model covering Tesla to take its latest earnings report into account, but we still expect the point fair value estimate to be below where shares are trading at the time of this writing (~$937 per share).

Apr 27, 2021

Tesla Scaling Up Nicely
Image Shown: Tesla is steadily working towards bringing another manufacturing facility online in the US, this time near Austin, Texas. Image Source: Tesla Inc – Shareholder Letter Covering the First Quarter of 2021. Electric vehicle (‘EV’) giant Tesla continues to impress as it smashed past consensus top- and bottom-line estimates when it reported first quarter 2021 earnings on April 26. The company delivered 184,800 vehicles (182,780 Model 3/Y variants and 2,020 Model S/X variants) and produced 180,338 vehicles in the first quarter of this year, though we note that Tesla only produced Model 3/Y variants last quarter and Model S/X vehicle deliveries were met via its inventory. In the first quarter of 2021, Tesla’s ‘automotive revenues’ of $9.0 billion were up 75% year-over-year, its GAAP revenues of $10.4 billion were up 74% year-over-year, and its GAAP net income came in north of $0.4 billion (up sharply from year-ago levels).

Jan 5, 2021

The Electric Vehicle (EV) Market Is Hot and Getting Hotter
Image Shown: A look at Tesla Inc’s new Gigafactory factory (Model Y body shop) in Shanghai, China. Image Source: Tesla Inc – Third Quarter of 2020 IR Earnings Presentation. The electric vehicle (‘EV’) market is hot and getting hotter. Aided by a combination of supportive government policies such as subsides for EVs (purchase tax credits, manufacturing tax credits), plans to ban the sale of automobiles powered by internal combustion engines (‘ICE’) in the coming years, and shifting consumer preferences (households preferring to appear “green”), the long-term outlook for EV sales is quite bright. Tesla is the posterchild of the EV boom given its first-mover advantage, though competitive headwinds are rising. Legacy auto manufacturers are looking to bulk up their EV offerings while new market entrants such as Lordstown Motors and privately-held Rivian, are set to further disrupt the industry. Ford Motor invested in Rivian back in 2019 to bulk up its presence in the EV market. By the middle of 2021, Rivian aims to begin deliveries of its EV pickup truck in the US, the R1T. Lordstown Motors also aims to bring an EV pickup truck to market, named the Endurance, with deliveries set to begin in early-2021. However, as global EV sales appear set to grow immensely, there is room for a number of winners in this space. Back in July 2020, privately-held Deloitte estimated that global EV sales will grow from an estimated 2.5 million in 2020 to 11.2 million in 2025 and then to 31.1 million by 2030, good for annual compound growth of about 29% in the coming decade, according to the research firm. EV sales in China are expected to represent about half of global EV sales in 2030, according to Deloitte, followed by the European market representing just over one quarter of global EV sales in 2030.

Sep 8, 2020

General Motors Makes a Deal with Nikola
Image Shown: On September 8, shares of General Motors Corporation (in orange) and Nikola Corporation (in blue) jumped higher during normal trading hours after announcing their strategic partnership. On September 8, General Motors and Nikola Corp announced a strategic partnership that saw shares of GM and NKLA leap up 8% and 41% during regular trading hours that day, respectively. General Motors will receive an 11% equity stake in Nikola (via common stock issuance) worth ~$2 billion in return for agreeing to provide Nikola in-kind services as “General Motors will engineer, homologate, validate and manufacture the Nikola Badger battery electric and fuel cell versions” which involves utilizing General Motors’ “Ultium battery system and Hydrotec fuel cell technology.” General Motors expects the agreement will close by the end of this month. There will be a lock-up provision concerning General Motors’ pro forma equity stake in Nikola that is set to run through June 2025. Nikola expects this agreement will save the firm ~$5 billion in battery, powertrain, engineering, and validation costs combined over the next decade as the company gains “access to General Motors' global safety-tested and validated parts and components” along with General Motors’ hydrogen fuel cell and electric battery technology.

Jul 7, 2020

Tesla Surges on Promising Production Report
Image Shown: Shares of Tesla Inc have more than tripled year-to-date, as of this writing, due to growing optimism about the electric vehicle and battery maker’s long-term growth outlook. On July 2, Tesla Inc provided an update on the number of electric vehicles it produced and delivered during the second quarter of 2020, when its domestic manufacturing capabilities were hit the hardest by the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic. This report likely acted as the catalyst for the latest run up in shares of TSLA as its technicals have "gone parabolic" of late.

Jun 24, 2020

Steel Dynamics Bets Big on North America’s Industrial Economy
Image Source: Steel Dynamics Inc – June 2020 IR Presentation. Investor sentiment towards the steel industry is rebounding as the medium- and long-term outlook for global industrial activity has improved markedly since March 2020. The ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic has significantly hampered near-term industrial activity, though major fiscal stimulus packages (made feasible through major monetary stimulus programs) launched in various developed nations could provide some relief. Shares of Steel Dynamics have recovered meaningfully since their March 2020 lows and are trading a tad below our fair value estimate as of this writing. Shares of STLD yield ~3.6% on an annualized forward-looking basis as of this writing and we give the steel maker a Dividend Cushion ratio of 1.3x providing for a “GOOD” Dividend Safety rating. The company has made great strides in improving its financial position over the past several years. We will first provide some background on the fiscal stimulus measures that have either been approved and or proposed in key economies across the world, before digging deeper into Steel Dynamics.