Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) overtook Daimler and has become the 3rd most valuable automaker on Earth. News of Tesla's new position in the world of cars may come as a surprise for shorts, but it seems that Elon Musk's all-electric company has found its place in the auto industry.
According to WholeMars, Tesla is 3rd in a list of the top 25 automakers by market cap. It was the only all-electric car maker on the list. Tesla's new position in the world of car makers could have been influenced by Elon Musk's Gigafactory Berlin announcement during the Golden Steering Wheel Awards Tuesday afternoon.
However, Tesla's new rank as the 3rd most valuable automaker on Earth is a precarious one. It narrowly beat Daimler's market cap by US$67 million. As of this writing, TSLA's market cap is US$64.01 billion, while Daimler's is US$57.085 billion. Toyota and Volkswagen beat Tesla by a large margin. Toyota's market cap is US$204.812 billion, and Volkswagen is valued at US$90.256 billion.
Elon Musk and Tesla have been winning numerous awards, titles, and nominations for its Model 3 sedan lately. It just won the Golden Steering Wheel Award for the Tesla Model 3, and the Model S won MotorTrend's ultimate Car of the Year title. Now Tesla can also claim to be the 3rd most valuable automaker on Earth.
Titles, awards, and nominations don't seem to sway Wall Street analysts, though. They base their price targets on reliable information and market research—mostly.
Jefferies recently raised its price target for TSLA to US$400 and reaffirmed its "Buy" rating for Elon Musk's company. Meanwhile, analyst Ari Wald from Oppenheimer thinks TSLA shares could reach higher values, matching its 2018 all-time high of US$385 if the company rallies, reported CNBC. However, the majority of Wall Street still undervalue Tesla. According to Bloomberg, a lot of analysts still expect TSLA shares to drop to around US$273 per share.
