Tesla Maintains Bitcoin Holdings and Surpasses Revenue Expectations
Tesla held onto its Bitcoin reserves in the second quarter of this year, as revealed in its latest quarterly report. The electric vehicle manufacturer has now gone eight consecutive quarters without any Bitcoin transactions, keeping its stash at approximately 9,720 Bitcoins, valued at around $640 million. These Bitcoins were initially purchased at a total cost of roughly $337 million.
Tesla's last significant Bitcoin activity was in Q2 2022 when it sold over 30,000 Bitcoins for $936 million, representing about 75% of its holdings at that time. The company's initial investment in Bitcoin was $1.5 billion, made in early 2021.
In addition to its cryptocurrency holdings, Tesla's second-quarter financial performance exceeded expectations, reporting total revenue of $25.5 billion compared to the forecasted $24.63 billion. Under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), Tesla's net profit was $1.5 billion, with a free cash flow of $1.34 billion. Despite this strong performance, the company faced weaker-than-expected earnings due to a second consecutive decline in automotive sales, leading to an over 8% drop in its stock during extended trading.
Tesla also highlighted record regulatory credit revenues in Q2, attributing this to other automakers lagging in meeting emissions requirements. However, CEO Elon Musk announced a delay in the launch of the autonomous taxi service, Robotaxi, moving the date from August 8 to October 10. Musk expressed confidence that the service would launch next year, despite acknowledging his past overly optimistic predictions.
On the political front, Musk has indicated plans to support former President Donald Trump through a new political action committee, although he had not donated to the group as of June. Musk also responded to a Wall Street Journal report by calling it "fake news" on social media platform X. His endorsement of Trump followed an assassination attempt at a political rally.
Trump, who has previously criticized Bitcoin, has recently shifted his stance and promised to end the Biden administration's "war on crypto" if elected president. This shift aligns with the growing support for Trump within the crypto community, as revealed by recent surveys. One survey by the Harris Poll indicated that one in three US voters considers a candidate's position on cryptocurrencies when voting. Another survey by Paradigm showed strong support for Trump among crypto enthusiasts, with prediction traders giving him a 69% chance of winning the 2024 US Presidential Election.