Analyst Sees Tesla's Future in Robotaxis and Robots, Keeps $500 Target

Analyst Dan Ives kept his 'outperform' rating on Tesla with a $500 price target. He believes Tesla is shifting from a carmaker into a 'physical AI' platform that covers cars, self-driving, humanoid robots, and energy storage. If investors only judge Tesla like a normal car company, they may miss how much money its software and services could bring in.

Tesla's latest quarterly report shows its robotaxi service has driven about 4.02 million kilometers with paying riders. The company is expanding the service and plans to launch the Cybercab, a car built just for driverless use with no steering wheel. That should cut running costs, but growing the fleet is still limited by things like 4680 battery pack supply.

Ives also likes Tesla's Optimus robot and energy storage business. He thinks they can open bigger markets and support the price target. But until these businesses clearly make profits, Tesla still needs to keep investing.