Cheap Tesla ‘Model Q’ News Sends Stock Skyrocketing

By Gary Gastelu |

Dec 9, 2024

Tesla definitely isn’t going bankrupt today.

Shares of the electric automaker spiked in pre-market trading on Monday following a report from China that a new affordable model will launch in the first half of next year.

Tesla’s head of investor relations, Travis Axelrod, reportedly shared the news with investors at a Deutsche Bank meeting, according to GlobalChinaEV.

Axelrod’s comments reconfirmed those made by CEO Elon Musk during Tesla’s third-quarter earnings call, when he said, “regarding the vehicle business, we are still on track to deliver our affordable models starting in the first half of 2025.”

However, Axelrod revealed the vehicles name as the Model Q. This is apparently a reference to Tesla short sellers who often use #TSLAQ in posts, which is what the ticker would switch to if the company declared bankruptcy.

With a current valuation far above $1 trillion, $33 billion in cash on hand and a streak of 20 profitable quarters, Tesla is not in imminent danger of declaring Chapter 11.

The so-called Model Q is expected to be based on the platform used by the Model 3 and Model Y, but reconfigured to hit a lower price point.

During the earnings call, Musk said that it would be “$30k” with incentives, which could represent a list price of $37,500 under the current federal tax credit program. The statement was made in October prior to Donald Trump’s election, however, and indications are that his administration will cut or cancel the credit, with Musk’s support. Tesla’s lowest-priced model today is the $42,490 Model 3 Long Range Rear-Wheel Drive.

OFFICIAL: TESLA IS THE LAST ALL-AMERICAN CAR BRAND

Tesla previously planned to build an all-new $25,000 car at a factory in Mexico, but the facility has been delayed and it would probably take at least two years from the start of construction to begin production.

Musk has since said that car is no longer necessary as the upcoming two-seat, $30,000 Robotaxi that is scheduled to initially be built at Tesla’s Austin, Tex., factory will fill that slot in the lineup.

Tesla has not officially commented on the Model Q reports and does not have a communications office that responds to requests from most media.