Worldwide Leader: Astronomical Profit For Tesla As Per Each Car Sold

For Tesla, being a worldwide leader does not only mean selling more cars, as one important parameter widely used in the industry is the profit margin left by each unit sold. The Austin company recorded an impressive profit margin for each sale during the third quarter of the year 2022.

The automotive industry is changing everywhere, and not just in the way it is approaching mobility. The annual and quarterly balance sheets of the companies make it very clear that profit margins have increased considerably in recent years; even though production and sales have slightly fallen, companies are actually earning more than ever thanks to the fact that they are making more profit on each car sold. As regarding current industry leaders, no other company is really capable of reaching the numbers that Tesla has achieved during the past quarter: the profit for each car is astronomical.

A few weeks ago Tesla presented a very comprehensive and thorough report of the financial results for the third quarter of the year 2022. Broadly speaking, the report describes a huge increase in the volume of deliveries: between July and September, the Austin manufacturer registered a total of 343,830 cars delivered worldwide, which is in simple terms the best quarterly record in its history. The good data also extended to the financial balances, with income coming from the sale of its EV models at 17,785 million dollars. Forbes has taken and compiled all data and extracted very relevant values indeed.

These financial experts have basically analyzed in full detail the figures achieved in Tesla's best quarter in its entire history. The third quarter of the year has been marked by a notable increase in production and raw material costs, in addition to an escalation in inflation rates all over the world. Despite this dramatic – and current - situation, the company's coffers saw total revenue of $21.45 billion, about $3.3 billion in net terms, which basically represents 55% more revenue than in the same period of the previous year, 2021.

Talking specifically about income we must also consider expenses, which are not few, to say the least: actual production of the cars had a cost of 13,099 million dollars (production costs, raw materials, and other costs). To this, the expenses generated by the leasing must be added, which have been recorded at 381 million dollars. The numbers come directly from Tesla, and if we take all the revenue and subtract the expenses to extrapolate it to each unit sold during the past quarter, the result is even more impressive.

With car sales posting a positive revenue of $17.785 million, and a total of 343,830 cars having been delivered worldwide, the division gives a pre-tax profit of $51,726 per car. It is a figure that could even grow during the last part of the year since the usual push of deliveries is expected before the end of the 4th quarter. There is currently no other manufacturer in the industry, at a worldwide level, that is capable of offering such high profit margins, and it seems unlikely that there will be one anytime soon.

Despite this positive quarterly result, Forbes makes it very clear that Tesla still has to face increasing competition and environmental problems that do not seem to have a quick solution. Raw materials and some other key components will continue to become scarcer and more expensive for some time, putting the bottom line at risk. The incoming recession is possibly the biggest risk of all, although Musk has confidently assured that Tesla is resistant to any such kind of recession; although that in fact remains to be seen, as will be the case with all other legacy automakers.

Source: forbes

All images courtesy of Tesla Inc.

Nico Caballero is the VP of Finance of Cogency Power, specializing in solar energy. He also holds a Diploma in Electric Cars from Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, and enjoys doing research about Tesla and EV batteries. He can be reached at @NicoTorqueNews on Twitter. Nico covers Tesla and electric vehicle latest happenings at Torque News.