Elon Musk ‘Acted Like a Little Baby’ and Was Nearly in Tears at Tesla’s Challenging Earnings Call

Tesla’s third-quarter earnings call recently took an unexpected turn, leaving CEO Elon Musk under scrutiny for his demeanor and remarks during the discussion. Financial analyst and famous YouTuber Kevin Paffrath didn’t mince words when describing Musk’s behavior, likening it to that of "a little baby" and noting that Musk seemed "almost in tears" at certain points, Paffrath, who boasts nearly 1.9 million subscribers on his Meet Kevin YouTube channel and holds Tesla stock, didn't hold back in his assessment of the call. He criticized Musk and exclaimed, "For a leader to cry about the economy rather than funneling that and coming up with a plan is pathetic."

As per the reports of Yahoo Finance, one of the major points of contention was Musk’s opinion on Tesla’s gigafactory in Mexico. Musk hinted at potential delays in the factory’s development due to rising interest rates. Musk remarked,  "If interest rates remain high or if they go even higher, it's that much harder for people to buy the car. They simply can't afford it," Pafrath mocked Musk’s response and asserted, "We need to know the light is at the end of the tunnel rather than hearing a complaining CEO who's not actually providing that path." The fallout from the earnings call was reflected in Tesla’s stock performance, with shares facing a 15% decline in the days following the call. This loss came despite Tesla’s strong year-to-date performance, with the company's valuation still up by a significant margin.

As per the sources of the Independent, Paffrath’s criticisms resonated with other analysts, with Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives characterizing the call as a "mini disaster." Ives highlighted and exclaimed, “We heard from a much more cautious Musk who focused on higher interest rates, AI investments, and highlighting the difficult path for Cybertruck production over the next 12 to 18 months.” Wells Fargo analyst Colin Langan also slammed Musk and wrote, “No more rose-colored glasses.” Moreover, Morgan Stanley’s Adam Jonas questioned, “How can we defend a ‘growth’ stock that appears ready to enter its 2nd consecutive year of earnings decline?”

Musk's remarks about the Cybertruck further fueled discussions about Tesla's strategy and challenges. He exclaimed, “We dug our own grave with Cybertruck, Ir is a great product…Demand is off the charts. We have over 1 million people who have reserved the car, so it’s not a demand issue. But we have to make it, and we need to make it a price that people can afford insanely difficult things. The blood, sweat, and tears that will be required to achieve that is just staggering.” While acknowledging strong demand for the vehicle, Musk emphasized the need to balance production costs and pricing to ensure affordability for consumers.