Tesla just had its best month since the election
The stock is riding high on analyst upgrades and big expected third-quarter sales.
November 2024 was a great month for Tesla. Its CEO threw his chips in for the winning presidential candidate, who was expected to slash federal red tape for Tesla’s white whale: self-driving cars.
September 2025 was nearly as good — at least in terms of the stock price’s increase from the month before.
Tesla closed at $444, 34% higher than it ended August. Tesla ended last November 38% higher than the month before, at $345. The company’s shares then hit an all-time high in December 2024 before a combination of falling sales and a fallout with President Trump, among other headwinds, sent the stock down. Tesla only went positive for the year earlier this month.
Lately, Tesla has been riding high on a series of analyst upgrades touting the company’s AI and autonomous ambitions. Last week, Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives raised his price target for Tesla to a Wall Street high of $600, forecasting a $1 trillion “AI and autonomous opportunity.”
The company is also, for the first time in a while, selling a lot of regular vehicles, which make up the lion’s share of its existing revenue. That part is a bit bittersweet, since the reason for the rise ends tomorrow. Electric vehicles in general are flying off lots in the US, with record sales expected this quarter as would-be buyers pull forward purchases to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credits, which end tomorrow. Of course, that suggests sales will fall off in subsequent quarters. Still, it’s good news now for Tesla, which some analysts predict will have a record quarter that could push the stock even higher.
We’ll know for sure later this week, when Tesla discloses third-quarter delivery numbers.
Update (September 30, 4:00 p.m. ET): Piece has been updated to confirm Tesla did notch its best month since November 2024.
