From Nasdaq: 2025-04-28 11:24:00

Tesla reported poor results in its automotive segment with a 2.1% operating margin, down from 5.5% last year. The company’s focus on energy, storage, and services has been strong, but automotive struggles remain. Elon Musk’s pledge to prioritize Tesla over DOGE has led to a stock surge, despite disappointing earnings.

Investment analysts recommend three stocks with “Double Down” alerts for significant growth potential. Historical returns show substantial gains for NVIDIA, Apple, and Netflix. Join Stock Advisor for alerts on these companies before the opportunity passes. The analysts emphasize the urgency of investing now for maximum returns.

The surge in Tesla’s stock price following Elon Musk’s commitment to focus on the company has raised questions about the impact of his absence on the company’s recent struggles. Despite disappointing earnings and lower profitability, Musk’s return to Tesla is seen as a positive development that could help the company recover from its financial setbacks. Elon Musk’s attention to detail and brand image for Tesla have been called into question, leading to concerns about competition and brand degradation. Despite positive feedback from Wall Street, Tesla insiders have been selling stock over the past year. However, most sales were part of a pre-arranged strategy, with one open market sale from Elon’s brother raising potential concerns. The company’s stock price has fluctuated, with questions about when it will reach its all-time high again.

The automotive segment was highlighted as a weak point in Tesla’s recent earnings report, with an emphasis on the need for more affordable options. Competition from Chinese manufacturers producing cheaper cars has put pressure on Tesla. To revive this segment, Tesla must focus on creating a more affordable model, ideally priced around $20,000 to compete with popular brands like Honda and Toyota. Making electric vehicles accessible to the masses could significantly boost the company’s success. Tesla is looking to develop a more affordable option to revive its automotive segment, as vehicle deliveries start to flatten. The energy generation and storage segment has seen steady growth due to increased demand for power walls and battery solutions. Meanwhile, Musk’s absence raises questions about the company’s future growth and vision.

Despite Musk’s absence, Tesla’s energy segment has shown growth, indicating operational stability. However, Musk’s grand vision and strategic direction may be crucial for scaling the company to the next level. The upcoming launch of the robotaxi in Austin and the Cybercab in 2026 are key components of Tesla’s future autonomy plans.

The difference between robotaxis and Cybercabs lies in their design and purpose, with the former utilizing existing Tesla models and the latter being purpose-built for autonomous taxi services. Musk’s plan to scale Optimus robots in Tesla factories quickly raises questions about the feasibility of his timeline, given his history of overpromising and underdelivering. Asit Sharma: Yes, and one of the things that has been really interesting about AMD over the past few years is that it has finally been able to crack into some of these really big, well-known customer accounts. And that has been a real boon for the company. So, when we think about the outlook for AMD, one of the things that I think a lot of investors are looking at is, can AMD continue to grow its market share, both in the traditional gaming space, in the data center space, and in the emerging markets, like the Internet of Things, where it’s also making inroads? And if it can, that may be a really good sign for the company’s growth prospects going forward.

NVIDIA’s top customers are Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet, and Amazon, leading to overlap in customer lists. AMD appeals to buyers looking for AI chips beyond NVIDIA, like Oracle, who ordered 30,000 MI 355x accelerators worth billions. AMD aims to offer generative AI at lower costs and decreasing reliance on NVIDIA.

AMD competes with NVIDIA in GPU accelerators for AI. AMD’s ROCM open-source libraries offer an alternative to NVIDIA’s CUDA. AMD must improve software libraries and develop Rack Scale systems to compete with NVIDIA’s integrated unit of computation. AMD nearly doubled R&D spending between 2021 and 2022 to catch up with NVIDIA’s technological edge.

To measure AMD’s progress, investors can track R&D spending and operating margins. AMD’s R&D spend nearly doubled between 2021 and 2022. Operating margins dropped from over 22% in 2021 to under 8% in 2024, while NVIDIA’s operating margin was nearly 62.5% in fiscal 2025. AMD is laying the foundation to catch up with NVIDIA’s technological advancements. Investors are eager to see if R&D investments will pay off for companies like NVIDIA and AMD. NVIDIA’s impressive 62.5% operating margin sets it apart, but AMD is catching up with its recent acquisitions. AMD’s operating margin is expected to climb to 20% by 2027, showing the payoff from recent R&D investments.

AMD’s acquisition of ZT Systems for $5 billion will expand its capabilities in server system design. By focusing on design and partnering with manufacturers like TSMC, AMD aims to challenge NVIDIA’s dominance in the chip market. This move could lead to a significant boost in free cash flow for AMD in the coming years.

Despite AMD’s promising growth potential, its shares have fallen over 40% in the past year, while NVIDIA’s shares have risen 30%. Market concerns about AMD’s execution and ability to compete in the GPU market are holding back its share price. Investors are waiting to see if AMD can deliver on its growth promises. AMD and NVIDIA are in a tight race for GPU dominance, with NVIDIA currently ahead. However, AMD’s lower cost proposition may appeal to companies like Oracle. The market may be underestimating AMD’s potential to gain market share in the future. Personal finance content follows Motley Fool editorial standards. Disclaimer: Some individuals mentioned have positions in various stocks.

Mary Long, part of the Motley Fool Money team, offers insights on the competition between AMD and NVIDIA. She emphasizes the importance of a lower cost proposition and the potential for AMD to gain market share. Disclosure: Some individuals mentioned have positions in certain stocks. The Motley Fool has recommendations for and against various stocks.

Several individuals mentioned in the article have positions in stocks like AMD, Amazon, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool recommends certain options related to Microsoft. The views expressed in the article do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc. Remember to make investment decisions based on thorough research and not solely on information provided in articles. Thank you for listening to the insights from the Motley Fool Money team.



Read more at Nasdaq: Tesla’s “Moment of Truth” | Nasdaq