"He's Back": Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas Say Musk's China Trip Is "Gesture Of Tesla Commitment"
Tesla bears are getting their nuts squeezed in the US cash session Monday after Elon Musk's surprise weekend trip to Beijing landed the EV carmaker a deal with tech giant Baidu to roll out its driver-assistance system, known as "Full Self-Driving," or FSD, in the world's largest car market.
Earlier, we noted Wedbush Securities senior analyst Dan Ives' comment on Musk's trip as a "watershed moment" for Tesla and "this could open up FSD in China, which I view as unlocking what really could be the golden opportunity for them."
Now Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas, one of Tesla's most prominent Wall Street bulls, states in bold print on the top of his note to clients today, "He's back."
"Elon Musk's visit to China means far more than seeking approval for self driving tech on Chinese roads. Whether Tesla's CEO is sleeping on a floor or on a plane... the message is clear: he's back," Jonas said.
Jonas wrote there had been mounting investor concerns about whether Musk was "all in" on Tesla, considering the billionaire spends some of his precious time (only appears) on an anti-woke crusade on his X platform. The analyst said Musk's weekend trip to China was a "gesture of commitment" to Tesla:
- Commitment. Investor concerns around whether Elon Musk was 'all in' on Tesla have been weighing heavily on the stock since the compensation package was rejected by Delaware judge. Even the smallest gesture of commitment (an unannounced trip to Beijing) has elevated meaning here, combating concerns over Musk's commitment to Tesla relative the broader Musk ecosystem of companies (SpaceX/X.AI/etc.).
Jonas made a very interesting point about Musk's national security clearance, saying it must be "higher than that of the typical American CEO due to his control of SpaceX and the range of missions it conducts with NASA, Space Force and the broader DoD."
He added that China's "blessing" of an FSD rollout in the country "seems to address embedded fears of Tesla's China profit (we estimate China accounts for as much as one half of profit)."
Jonas reiterated an overweight rating on Tesla with a $310 price target.
Here's how the analyst arrived at the $310 figure:
He also touched on notable upside and downside risks to the future outlook.
Musk's timing of the China trip comes as Tesla's short interest hit a three-year high, or about 3.84% of the float short, equivalent to about 106 million shares.
For all those technicians out there...
Meanwhile, on X, Musk posted this image...
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 29, 2024
There's nothing like a good ole' squeeze.