Tesla is the next Apple and its valuation could soar by another $190 billion, Wedbush says
- Tesla's stock could jump another 20%, Wedbush said in a note on Thursday.
- Analyst Dan Ives compared it to Apple in the late 2000s, when it started to monetize some products.
Tesla could add $190 billion to its valuation, according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.
He raised his price target for the EV maker by $50 to $350, arguing in a note that Elon Musk's company has demonstrated that it can monetize key products including its supercharger network and self-driving tech.
Shares would have to rise 20% from their current $291 level to hit $350 – and that would add $188 billion to Tesla's current market capitalization, by Insider's calculations.
Ives was responding to a so-so second-quarter earnings report released by Tesla after Wednesday's closing bell, which dragged its stock price down 4% in premarket trading Thursday.
The EV maker's profit margins came in below expectations because Musk pressed ahead with aggressive price cuts in a bid to boost market share – although it did beat Wall Street's earnings and revenue targets.
Wednesday's numbers have only made Ives more bullish on the EV maker.
The analyst praised Musk's price war as "a home run success in China, Europe and the US", amid signs that traditional carmakers are struggling to keep pace with Tesla's cuts.
Ives also highlighted Tesla's trailblazing deal to share its supercharger network with Ford and GM as a money-making opportunity – and added that its profits are likely to keep rising once it's able to roll out its full-self-driving tech more widely.
He sees the best point of comparison for Tesla as Apple in the late 2000s, when the iPhone maker's stock price didn't yet reflect its earnings potential.
"We view Tesla where Apple was in the 2008/2009 period as Cupertino was just starting to monetize its services and golden ecosystem," Ives wrote in Thursday's research note. "We view this quarter as a major step in the right direction – as Tesla is playing chess while others play checkers."
Tesla is one of the major winners from the AI-fueled tech stock boom. Shares are up 136% this year, adding $530 billion to its market cap and leaving it worth just over $900 billion.