Tesla Motors on Wednesday reported first quarter non-GAAP revenues of $1.6 billion which meant a loss of $75 million for the electric automaker, or $0.57 per share. The Q1 GAAP revenues were $1.15 billion with a net loss of $282 million, or $2.13 per share.
Tesla said orders for its Model S were up 45 percent compared to a year ago. The company, led by Elon Musk, also touted the fact that it secured more than 325,000 reservations for its upcoming Model 3 sedan in the first week alone, implying roughly $14 billion in future sales.
Looking ahead, Tesla still anticipates delivering 80,000 to 90,000 new vehicles this year. The automaker aims to produce 20,000 vehicles in the second quarter and deliver as many as possible with the rest being delivered in Q3. Realistically, Tesla thinks it can deliver 17,000 vehicles in the coming quarter.
Tesla confirmed earlier in the day that two key executives - Greg Reichow, vice president of production, and Josh Ensign, vice president of manufacturing - were leaving the company. Share values dipped on the news but have mostly recovered in after-hours trading.
Perhaps the biggest news of all (and what sent shares back up) is that Tesla is revising its plan to hit the 500,000-vehicles-produced mark, moving the date up from 2020 to 2018. It's an aggressive move that the company says will likely require additional capital and push back its goal of being cash flow positive in 2016.
It's a move that probably makes sense, especially if Tesla wants to cut through its Model 3 reservation list in a sensible timeframe.