Wedbush's Dan Ives put Tesla stock buybacks and the naming a new CEO for Twitter by the end of January on his list.
Susan Walsh/AP
Elon Musk must take 10 steps to bring about a turnaround in Tesla stock in 2023, according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.
Shares have tumbled more than 60% in 2022 amid Musk's takeover of Twitter, sales of his Tesla holdings to fund Twitter, the Federal Reserve's rate hikes, and slowing demand.
In a Wednesday note, Ives said that while his firm remains bullish on Tesla over the long-term with a price target of $175 over the next 12 months, "Musk MUST start to change direction here otherwise this situation could get even uglier."
Here is his list of to-do's for Musk in 2023:
1. Name a new chief executive of Twitter by the end of January.
2. Stop his personal sales of Tesla stock and formally adopt a 10b5-1 plan "so investors know there is no major selling block around the corner as Musk sold roughly $40 billion of TSLA stock the past year."
3. Present investors a more conservative delivery target for Tesla EVs. "The 50% growth target is not happening in our opinion, with 35%+ delivery growth a more hittable and realistic goal for 2023."
4. Re-focus on Tesla and not Twitter. "Musk is the hearts and lung of Tesla and vice versa."
5. Set a delivery target for the Cybertruck by the end of 2023. "Timing is key here with competition from all angles and worries production woes will push this into 2024. Giga Austin is up and running and now key to hitting this next growth endeavor for Tesla."
6. Make changes to the Tesla board of directors to add more experience in tech and EVs.
7. Issue a Tesla stock buyback. "Announcing a major stock buyback program is important/key for the Street's confidence and with the stock at these levels a no brainer strategic move in our opinion for Tesla given its massive treasure chest."
8. Foster more financial transparency around margin structure at Tesla. "We believe this is a hidden gem at the company with more production/sales in China and Giga Berlin and Austin ramping."
9. Refrain from political issues on Twitter. "The more political on Twitter that Musk becomes is a bad thing for selling EV cars to the masses."
10. Present a comprehensive strategy for his plans at Twitter. "Right now very simply the fear is Twitter is bleeding money with advertisers fleeing (for now) which means more losses and therefore more Musk TSLA stock sales. Once a new CEO is in place lay out the 3-year strategy of Twitter and what this can become, Super App, 'X', WeChat 2.0, etc."
