Tesla shares could swing 10% either way after results, options say

By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Options traders expect Tesla shares to move nearly 10% in either direction by Friday, options data showed.

That’s roughly in line with the stock’s average move of about 10.1% after the company’s last eight quarterly earnings reports, according to data from Trade Alert.

With Tesla’s market capitalization at around $800 billion, such a move would cause the company’s value to change by around $80 billion.

The electric vehicle maker is expected to report Tuesday that its second-quarter margin hit its lowest level in more than five years, and CEO Elon Musk is expected to step up efforts to implement the company’s robotaxi projects and AI products.

Musk had announced earlier this year that Tesla would unveil its robotaxi on August 8, but signaled last week that the automaker would take more time to incorporate a design change following a media report that the launch was being delayed until October.

Tesla options volume on Tuesday was relatively light with some 770,000 contracts changing hands as of 12:20 p.m. EDT (1620 GMT), about half the pace of trading over the past month, according to data from Trade Alert.

The stock, which has appreciated by around 70% over the past three months, has been buoyed by news that the company will introduce “new models” by early 2025 using its current platforms and production lines.

Tesla shares fell after the company reported results for five of the past six quarters, according to data from Trade Alert.

Shares were down 1.5% at $247.86 Tuesday afternoon.

Alphabet is also set to report quarterly results later Tuesday, with options traders bracing for the stock to move as much as 6.3% in either direction, according to data from Trade Alert. The stock moved about 6.7% on average the day after the quarterly results were released.

(Reporting by Saqib Iqbal Ahmed in New York; Editing by Ira Iosebashvili and Matthew Lewis)