Musk's "banknote" capabilities.
The world's online business Yang Yuexin
Edited by Wang Shiqi
Tesla is on the hot search again, this time because of the "ability to absorb gold".
On the morning of January 27, Tesla announced the fourth quarter and full year of 2021 financial results, achieving profitability for 10 consecutive quarters, and the delivery volume, overall revenue and net profit all set a record. Under GAAP (General Accounting Standard), net profit in 2021 will reach RMB35.1 billion, equivalent to "100 million yuan per day".
Although the performance exceeded market expectations, Tesla's stock price fell by 12% on the day, and the market value evaporated by more than $100 billion (about 636.1 billion yuan) in a single day, and finally closed at $829, setting a new low since October 14, 2021.
The reason for the decline in the stock price may be due to market environments such as the Fed's expectations of interest rate hikes. At present, Tesla's market value is $849.959 billion, or about 5.4 trillion yuan, ranking sixth in the market value of LISTED COMPANIES IN THE UNITED STATES.
In the Chinese market, Tesla has always been full of topics. Just a day before the earnings report, Tesla confirmed to the media that it had officially sued the big V "Xiaogang Xuechang" (real name Chen Zhengang), who has 15 million followers on Douyin, for violating his right to reputation. The reason is that at the end of April 2021, "Xiaogang Senior" released two videos in which the Tesla Model 3 did not pass the automatic emergency braking test he designed. At one point, the video was widely disseminated on the Internet.
In 2021, Tesla encountered many storms in China, fire incidents, brake failure controversies, large-scale recalls... Whether it is sought after or questioned, from the data point of view, Tesla is still the most eye-catching one in the soaring global new energy vehicle market.
Net profit soared, and hematopoietic capacity increased
In the fourth quarter of 2021, Tesla's total revenue reached $17.719 billion ( about 112.7 billion yuan ), an increase of 65% year-on-year. Total revenue for the year reached US$53.823 billion , up 71% year-on-year.
Musk said on the results call, "2021 is a breakthrough year for Tesla and the entire electric car space." What is more noteworthy is the continuous growth of Tesla's net profit.
According to the financial report, Tesla's operating profit under the GAAP (General Accounting Standard) rules in the fourth quarter of last year was 2.613 billion US dollars (about 16.6 billion yuan), and the operating profit margin of 14.7% was also the highest among all mass production OEMs.
According to the financial report, the reason for the increase in Tesla's operating profit is that the cost of bicycles has been further reduced, the delivery volume has increased, and the profitability of car rental, services and other businesses has increased.
It was also the 10th consecutive quarter of Tesla's profitability. In the third quarter of 2019, Tesla's net profit was $143 million, turning a loss into a profit for the first time, and since then, the net profit has remained positive.
Image source: Tesla earnings report original text
In 2020, Tesla achieved full-year profit for the first time; in 2021, the net profit was $5.519 billion, a sharp increase of 665% year-on-year. Converted into RMB, Tesla's net profit in 2021 is about 35.1 billion yuan, which is equivalent to making 100 million yuan per day. From the first quarter to the fourth quarter of 2021, net profit was $438 million, $1,142 million, $1,618 million and $2,321 million, respectively. Making more and more money, faster and faster, Tesla's profits "can't be stopped".
Before 2021, Tesla still mainly relied on selling carbon credits to make money, and 64.4% of the net profit in 2020 came from the sale of carbon credits. In 2021, Tesla earned $1.465 billion (about 9.1 billion yuan) from carbon trading sales, which is lower than the previous year, and the continuous improvement of net profit from the main business shows that Tesla's self-hematopoietic ability is constantly increasing.
Deliveries have been significantly improved, and no new cars will be launched this year
Tesla's net profit surge was directly due to the increase in deliveries. Musk said, "This year, we struggled with the lack of supply and found ways to increase our production by nearly 90%. ”
According to the financial report, Tesla vehicle deliveries reached 936,200 units last year, an increase of 87% year-on-year, a record high, mainly contributing from the Model 3 and Model Y models, accounting for 97.33% (911,200 units). Among them, the total delivery volume in the fourth quarter reached 308,600 units, an increase of 71% year-on-year, and the average inventory cycle was further compressed to only 4 days.
It is worth mentioning that in the past year, China's new car-making forces have also made great progress. According to the Data of China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in 2021, the total delivery volume of Xiaopeng Automobile will be 98,155 units, the ideal car will be 90,491 units, and the Weilai Automobile will be 91,429 vehicles, an increase of between 100% and 300% year-on-year.
In addition to the continuous increase in production of the Shanghai Gigafactory, Tesla's Fremont plant in California also broke the production record. Tesla also revealed in the earnings call that the Texas Gigafactory in the United States began production of Model Y at the end of last year, and is expected to provide 2/3 of Model Y production in the eastern region of the United States.
It is reported that the Model Y manufactured by the Austin Gigafactory in Texas will soon start delivery after completing all certification procedures; the Berlin Gigafactory has also started testing of vehicle production equipment at the same time. Tesla expects in its earnings report that the average annual growth rate of vehicle delivery will reach 50% in the next few years.
High production capacity has led to a further decline in the cost of bicycles.
In the third and fourth quarters of last year, Tesla's bicycle cost has dropped to about $36,000. Including large castings, structural battery packs, 4680 batteries and many other projects, they will also help to further reduce costs.
On the software side, the full self-driving (FSD) beta progress released in the earnings report shows that its test scale in the United States has grown to nearly 60,000 vehicles and will be completed by the end of 2022. As FSD reaches a high level of subscriptions in 2022, it could become Tesla's largest source of revenue.
But some people are not buying Tesla's shift in focus to production capacity. Cyber trucks, which have previously been unveiled and have been highly anticipated, will not be launched in 2022. Some analysts also predict that the suspension of the launch of new models at lower prices may affect Tesla's growth prospects in the fierce market competition.
From niche to popular, peripheral products are popular
Musk, who announced that he would not launch a new car for the time being, seems to have transferred his "whole life" ability to the development of peripheral products, always firmly grasping the market's attention and the hearts of car fans.
During the Double 11 period last year, Tesla Tmall's official flagship store listed a lightning-shaped glass empty wine bottle, priced at 779 yuan, limited to 1500 pieces. Previously, the empty bottle was robbed wildly abroad, and the auction price on eBay (eBay) exceeded $3,000.
Many people think that this is Musk collecting the "IQ tax", but Tesla, which has tasted the sweetness, relies on the self-built online direct sales system such as the official website, and has since launched a number of peripheral products. Even products that are not comparable to the car are always sought after by the market.
At the beginning of this year, tesla Tmall store put on the shelves a 489 yuan charging treasure. Soon after its launch, it sold out more than 1,000 pieces and sold out the next day. At present, the price of this charging treasure on second-hand platforms such as Idle Fish is higher than the original price, and some are close to 1,000 yuan.
A few days later, another whistle, inspired by a cybercard and priced at 350 yuan, was also snapped up within a day of launch.
A few days ago, foreign media reported that Tesla expanded the scope of use of the trademark, adding new categories including headphones, digital audio players, speakers, amplifiers and so on. Sure enough, Tesla China quickly announced that it would push the Year of the Tiger software update on February 1, adding kTV features that can be used with TeslaMic wireless microphones. According to the official website, this wireless microphone is priced at 1199 yuan.
Tesla's business in China is doing well, which is the result of the "grounding" of the market strategy in recent years. When Tesla first entered the Chinese market, it was still a niche geek brand in the minds of consumers. But it is clear that Musk is not just a technological "god man", but also a mature businessman.
In April 2020, Tesla announced that it would open an official flagship store on Tmall. Consumers only need to pay 1 yuan to make an appointment for model S/X/3 and other models, purchase original accessories, and localize the peripherals for Chinese consumers.
Online channels allow Tesla to extend its reach. In one day, Tesla's Tmall flagship store attracted 35,400 fans; the current number of fans is 654,000. Last year, the live e-commerce fire, Tesla also took advantage of the hot iron to open its own live broadcast room, which has been live broadcast for many consecutive days.
Tesla enjoys the "traffic dividend" of making money no matter what it sells, and at the same time, it also indirectly "feeds" many self-media car reviewers. Xiao Gang is one of them. He has released two test videos for the Tesla Model 3 and Xiaopeng P7 emergency brake tests, the result is that the Tesla Model 3 brake stop failed, and the Xiaopeng P7 brake stopped successfully. The video set off a hot discussion, the test process was questioned by other car critics and consumers, and many netizens commented that the evaluation was unfair.
The fire around Tesla and the heated discussion of netizens on the evaluation of "Xiaogang Xuechang" show that Tesla has successfully broken the circle and moved from the geek circle technology circle to ordinary consumers.
Although the brand has been cultivated, Tesla has been criticized a lot. For example, delayed delivery, new cars are difficult to come out, and for example, multiple price cuts, car owners helplessly laughed that they were "cut leeks".
This year, Tesla, which plans to bury its head in the car but does not forget to continue to stir up the market, will it become the focus of public opinion next time?
The head and cover pictures are from Tesla's official blog
It is an authoritative news media focusing on Internet business, recording the characters and stories of Internet business, and providing systematic services for Tmall and Taobao merchants that integrate training, marketing and practical combat.