Tesla shares fall for the first time in three sessions on Wednesday, company reports a larger-than-expected quarterly loss

On February 22nd Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) reported a wider-than-projected loss per share during the quarter ended on December 30th, despite strong sales and an increase in revenue.

Tesla shares registered their first drop in the past three trading sessions on Wednesday. The stock went down 1.40% ($3.88) to $273.51, after touching an intraday low at $272.60, or a level not seen since February 17th ($264.15). In the week ended on February 19th the shares of the electric car manufacturer added 1.11% to their market value compared to a week ago, which marked a second consecutive period of gains, but yet, the smallest increase since the week ended on January 1st. The stock has pared its advance to 8.57% so far during the current month, after rising 17.90% in January. The latter has been a second consecutive month of gains and also the best monthly performance since March 2016. For the entire past year, the shares of the NASDAQ 100-included electric car maker lost 10.97%.

Teslas loss per share was reported at $0.69 during the quarter ended on December 30th. In comparison, the median forecast by analysts had pointed to a loss of $0.43 per share.

The companys revenue was reported to have increased to $2.28 billion during the fourth quarter from $1.21 billion during the same period a year earlier. A Thomson Reuters consensus forecast had pointed to $2.19 billion in revenue.

In a letter to shareholders, the electric car maker said it had a record number of orders for its Model S sedan and Model X sport utility during the quarter ended on December 30th. At the same time, the company projects to deliver between 47 000 and 50 000 Model S and Model X vehicles during the first six months of 2017.

According to the letter, production of Teslas Model 3 sedan is set to begin in July, with capacity reaching 5 000 Model 3 vehicles per week before the end of Q4 2017. Model 3 production is also expected to expand to 10 000 vehicles per week “at some point in 2018”.

The company “is now reaching the point where it is going to have to jump off the pier and swim with the sharks”, Jack Nerad, executive editorial director and executive market analyst for Kelley Blue Book, said, cited by CNBC.

“I would think one thing a lot of people might largely ignore is the leap it takes — and it is a big leap, across a gorge really — to go from being a specialty manufacturer of high end electrics to being a high volume seller”, Nerad was quoted as saying. “You have a lot of spinning plates. Actually building the car is not the most difficult of tricks you have to pull off.”

Daily and Weekly Pivot Levels

With the help of the Camarilla calculation method, todays levels of importance for the Tesla stock are presented as follows:

R1 – $274.50
R2 – $275.50
R3 (Range Resistance – Sell) – $276.49
R4 (Long Breakout) – $279.48
R5 (Breakout Target 1) – $282.96
R6 (Breakout Target 2) – $284.40

S1 – $272.52
S2 – $271.52
S3 (Range Support – Buy) – $270.53
S4 (Short Breakout) – $267.54
S5 (Breakout Target 1) – $264.06
S6 (Breakout Target 2) – $262.62

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – $274.59
R1 – $285.03
R2 – $297.83
R3 – $308.27
R4 – $318.71

S1 – $261.79
S2 – $251.35
S3 – $238.55
S4 – $225.75