Why Is Tesla (TSLA) Stock Falling Today?

Shares of Tesla TSLA slumped nearly 7% in early morning trading Monday after reports suggested that the carmaker likely fell short of its Model 3 deliveries goal in the first quarter. The news comes shortly after a brutal week for the company saw investors panic over a Moody’s downgrade, a major recall, and news of a crash involving its Autopilot feature.

Model 3 Woes

The first quarter of the calendar year ended over the weekend, and according to at least one key analyst, Tesla probably fell short of its self-supplied estimate of 10,000 Model 3 deliveries in the period and may have lagged its target to end March at a 2,500 vehicle per week rate.

“It’s about the magnitude of the miss,” wrote Philippe Houchois, a Jefferies analyst who rates Tesla shares as a hold, in a note to clients Monday.

Bloomberg added more context to these projections with its Model 3 rollout tracker that estimates production using VIN numbers. The publication said its tracker estimates that Tesla was making about 1,190 Model 3s per week as of Sunday and may have produced almost 9,300 of the cars in the quarter—although this does not account for any last-minute surges in output.

Last Week’s Headlines

The news that Tesla may be behind on the production schedule for its integral Model 3 joins a growing list of near-term concerns for the automaker. Last week, shares of the company slipped about 12% on the back of several headache-inducing headlines.

For one, Tesla is facing heightened scrutiny of its Autopilot feature after a fatal crash involving a Model X vehicle that had the driver-assistance system engaged. Tesla said last week that the driver of this vehicle ignored several visual and one audible warnings in the seconds before colliding with a highway divider, but the National Transportation Safety Board is still actively investigating all aspects of the incident.

Meanwhile, Tesla was also recently forced to recall all 123,000 Model S vehicles built before April 2016 in order to retrofit a power-steering part. That move came shortly after Moody’s downgraded the company’s corporate family rating to B3, sending unsecured bonds to all-time lows.

Investors Fleeing

Now, with debt issues mounting and vehicle production issues likely to disappoint yet again, investors are ditching the stock, with shares of the electric vehicle giant touching a new 52-week low of $246.00 in early morning trading Monday.

And concerns about Model 3 deliveries are just one piece of the worsening analyst snapshot for Tesla. Within the past 60 days, a number of negative revisions to the company’s full-year earnings projections has sent our Zacks Consensus Estimate a staggering $2.09 lower. That downward revision activity has earned the stock a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

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