Tesla shares close higher on Monday, auto maker to lift vehicle prices in China on August 30th

According to a Monday report by Reuters, citing sources with knowledge of the matter, prices of Tesla vehicles in China will be raised on August 30th. The US electric car maker may again lift prices in December, in case Chinas tariffs on vehicles produced in the United States come into effect, the sources said.

Tesla shares closed higher for the fifth time in the past twelve trading sessions on NASDAQ on Monday. It has also been the sharpest daily surge since August 19th. The stock went up 1.70% ($3.60) to $215.00, which also was the intraday high.

Shares of Tesla Inc have retreated 35.40% so far in 2019 compared with a 19.67% gain for the benchmark index, Nasdaq 100 (NDX).

In 2018, Tesla’s stock went up 6.89%, thus, it outperformed the Nasdaq 100, which registered a 1.04% loss.

An earlier report by Reuters had stated that Tesla was considering to raise prices in China in September following a considerable depreciation of the Chinese Yuan against the US Dollar.

Last week the Chinese ministry of commerce said that tariffs of 25% on vehicles and 5% on auto parts would be re-instituted, after it had suspended them in December 2018.

“Tesla will also try to ship more cars to China before December, before the tariff hikes,” one of the sources was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation

According to CNN Money, the 30 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Tesla Inc’s stock price, have a median target of $241.00, with a high estimate of $530.00 and a low estimate of $140.00. The median estimate represents a 12.09% upside compared to the closing price of $215.00 on August 26th.

The same media also reported that at least 10 out of 32 surveyed investment analysts had rated Tesla Inc’s stock as “Hold”, while other 10 – as “Buy”. On the other hand, 9 analysts had recommended selling the stock.