Morgan Stanley Reshuffles EV Portfolio Amid Market Volatility
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 6 hours ago
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Should l Buy TSLA?
Source: stocktwits
- Nio Stake Reduction: Morgan Stanley cut its Nio stake by approximately 6% in Q4, ending with about 15.3 million shares valued near $75 million, reflecting a cautious approach amid market volatility following new SUV launches.
- Tesla Continued Trim: The firm reduced its Tesla holdings for the third consecutive quarter, finishing with roughly 35.8 million shares, the lowest since 2023, despite maintaining a value exceeding $14 billion, indicating a cautious outlook on future growth.
- Rivian Stake Increase: Morgan Stanley boosted its Rivian stake by nearly 47% in Q4, raising holdings to about 12.2 million shares, signaling renewed confidence ahead of the R2 mid-size SUV launch and a strategic shift in investment focus.
- Market Sentiment Shift: Retail sentiment on social media showed Nio as ‘bearish’, Tesla as ‘bullish’, while Rivian garnered ‘extremely bullish’ sentiment, indicating investor optimism about its future performance amidst changing market dynamics.
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Analyst Views on TSLA
Wall Street analysts forecast TSLA stock price to fall
30 Analyst Rating
12 Buy
11 Hold
7 Sell
Hold
Current: 417.440
Low
25.28
Averages
401.93
High
600.00
Current: 417.440
Low
25.28
Averages
401.93
High
600.00
About TSLA
Tesla, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, sells and leases high-performance fully electric vehicles and energy generation and storage systems, and offers services related to its products. Its segments include automotive, and energy generation and storage. The automotive segment includes the design, development, manufacturing, sales and leasing of high-performance fully electric vehicles, and sales of automotive regulatory credits. It also includes sales of used vehicles, non-warranty maintenance services and collisions, part sales, paid supercharging, insurance services revenue and retail merchandise sales. The energy generation and storage segment include the design, manufacture, installation, sales and leasing of solar energy generation and energy storage products and related services and sales of solar energy systems incentives. Its consumer vehicles include the Model 3, Y, S, X and Cybertruck. Its lithium-ion battery energy storage products include Powerwall and Megapack.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- Radical Production Redesign: Musk revealed that Tesla is adopting a 'radical redesign of car manufacturing' to achieve approximately 5X higher production rates, indicating that while initial output may be slow, it will ramp up significantly over time.
- Autonomous Fleet Outlook: Musk predicts that Tesla's autonomous fleet will become the largest in the future, despite the current Full Self-Driving (FSD) service requiring human intervention, reflecting the company's ambitious technological goals.
- Market Performance: As of February 13, Tesla's stock gained 0.09%, closing at $417.44, indicating market confidence in the company's growth potential.
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- Subscription Model Shift: Tesla (TSLA) has launched a full self-driving (FSD) subscription service in core markets like the U.S. and Canada, charging approximately $99 per month instead of a one-time fee of nearly $8,000, aiming to lower entry barriers and enhance recurring software revenue.
- Existing User Protection: Current owners who have paid for FSD will retain lifetime access, a strategy that not only safeguards existing customers' investments but also has the potential to attract new users, thereby expanding Tesla's customer base.
- Technical Foundation and Market Positioning: FSD is built on Tesla's Autopilot foundation, incorporating features like adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping; although classified as a Level 2 driver-assistance system, its long-term goal is to achieve higher levels of autonomy, enhancing competitive positioning in the market.
- Future Growth Potential: Analysts view the high-margin software revenue from FSD as a stabilizing factor for Tesla amid challenges in other business areas, while its integration with future robotaxi networks is expected to further enhance the company's long-term value.
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- Surge in Swap Demand: Driven by the Spring Festival holiday, Nio set a new single-day record of 146,649 battery swaps on February 15, indicating a significant rise in the usage of its battery swap ecosystem and reflecting growing consumer reliance on EV charging solutions.
- Cumulative Swap Milestone: Earlier this month, Nio announced that its cumulative battery swap count surpassed 100 million, marking widespread acceptance of its battery swap service model and further solidifying its leadership position in the Chinese EV market.
- Service Network Expansion: Nio currently operates 3,750 swap stations nationwide, with over 1,000 located along expressways, ensuring convenient battery swap services for users during the peak travel period of the Spring Festival, thereby enhancing customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
- Recall Pressure: Despite initiating a recall of over 246,000 vehicles earlier this month due to a software safety issue that may affect display screens, strong battery swap usage metrics suggest that consumers continue to heavily rely on Nio's battery swap ecosystem during peak travel periods, demonstrating the brand's resilience.
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Market Performance: Tesla stock experienced a decline at the beginning of a shortened trading week following Presidents Day.
Trading Status: The stock is currently trading near a "support" level, indicating potential stability or resistance in its price movement.
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- Technological Edge: Waymo utilizes LiDAR technology alongside cameras and radar to build its autonomous capabilities, while Tesla primarily relies on computer vision, showcasing Waymo's technological superiority in the market.
- Cost and Safety: Although Waymo's per-vehicle costs may be two to three times higher than Tesla's, LiDAR is considered superior in safety and dynamic response, a viewpoint widely supported by industry experts.
- New Waymo Driver: Waymo recently launched its sixth-generation Waymo Driver, featuring a 17-megapixel imaging system that enhances dynamic range, low-light sensitivity, and resolution, further improving driving capabilities in adverse weather conditions.
- Market Competition Outlook: Waymo's LiDAR technology could provide a competitive advantage in the robotaxi race; despite its higher costs, its safety and accuracy may offer Waymo a sustainable edge in the autonomous vehicle market.
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- FSD Payment Policy Change: Tesla has officially ended the one-time payment option for its Full Self-Driving (FSD) technology, although some owners can still access the system through a $99/month subscription, a shift that may impact consumer purchasing decisions and the company's revenue structure.
- Luxury Package Benefits: The FSD service is now available at no additional cost in the Luxe Package for the Tesla Model S and Model X, which also includes free access to the Supercharger network and a Four-Year Premium Service package, enhancing the appeal of high-end models, but the non-transferability of FSD limits user flexibility.
- Model Sunset Plans: Tesla will phase out the Model S and Model X in the coming months, confirmed by Elon Musk during the Q4 earnings call, a move that could affect Tesla's competitiveness in the premium electric vehicle market.
- Cybercab Production Launch: Tesla plans to begin production of the highly anticipated Cybercab in April, with Musk touting a radical new manufacturing approach that will start slowly but is expected to ramp up quickly, a strategy that may influence the company's production efficiency and market supply capabilities.
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