Transportation

Tesla Stock Hits Record High After Hertz Places Biggest Electric Vehicle Order Ever


Topline

Shares of Tesla skyrocketed past an all-time closing high Monday morning after reports that Hertz placed an order to buy 100,000 cars as the recently bankrupt car-rental company embraces the booming electric-vehicle market in a bid to turn around its ailing business.

Key Facts

Tesla stock climbed more than 4% in early trading hours to about $952 on Monday, surpassing an all-time closing high of $909.68 from Friday and propelling the car-maker’s market value by about $36 billion. 

The surge started in pre-market trading immediately after Bloomberg reported Hertz ordered the vehicles to be delivered before the end of next year as part of a broader effort to electrify its rental-car fleet.

In a Monday morning note, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said the order marks the biggest electric vehicle order ever placed thanks to a hefty price tag of $4.2 billion. 

In a statement, Hertz said customers will be able to rent the Tesla Model 3s from its locations beginning in early November and pointed out the order will help electric vehicles comprise more than 20% of the company’s global fleet.

Shares of Hertz, which trade over the counter and are no longer listed on a major exchange, were roughly flat after falling 3% on Friday.

Key Background

Hertz filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last May as the Covid-19 pandemic dealt a massive blow to demand in the leisure industry. The company emerged from bankruptcy this June after shedding more than $5 billion in debt, thanks in part to a new group of investors. In a Monday statement, Fields touted “the new Hertz” while teasing the company’s commitment to grow its electric-vehicle fleet as part of its restructuring efforts. The order represents about 20% of the nearly 500,000 vehicles Tesla sold last year. 

Crucial Quote 

“While Hertz is in the early stages of electrifying its rental car fleet, Tesla getting an order of this magnitude highlights the broader electric-vehicle adoption underway as part of this oncoming green tidal wave now hitting the U.S.,” Ives said, pointing to Tesla as the clear leader in a burgeoning field of manufacturers that also include legacy carmakers GM and Ford, as well as newer firms Lucid Motors and Faraday Future

Big Number

$940 billion. That’s Tesla’s market value after its latest boost. The Hertz-fueled surge has helped make Tesla more valuable than social media giant Facebook.

Further Reading

Hertz Orders 100,000 Teslas in Rental-Market Shake-Up (Bloomberg)



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