It's been a volatile and interesting year for Tesla (TSLA 3.91%) stock, its CEO, Elon Musk, and its various businesses. The stock has traded as low as $142 and as high as $480 per share over the past 12 months.
One widely followed Wall Street analyst acknowledges the risks, but sees a very valuable company in Tesla. Wedbush's Dan Ives issued a new report last week, giving the electric vehicle (EV) leader a stock price target of $550 per share. (It's trading as of this writing just under $300 per share, with a market cap of $950 billion.) And Ives sees even more value emerging down the road.
Tesla shares have dropped more than 25% from their December high. One reason for that has been investor angst about Musk and his new role with the Trump initiative called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). As the Tesla CEO works to shake up the government, his time and attention spent at Tesla and his other ventures is likely suffering, as there are only so many hours in a day.
But Ives thinks Tesla investors shouldn't be overly concerned about that situation. Musk has competent management working at Tesla, after all. In his recent report shared by Barron's, Ives wrote that investors should instead focus on the expected upcoming launch of a lower-priced EV that could bring in new buyers.
Investors should also watch Tesla's progress on self-driving cars. The company has said it plans to launch its first driverless taxi service as early as June. Ives acknowledged Musk's new role at DOGE, but noted that the serial entrepreneur has always been able to multitask in ways most people can't.
Ives' current price target for Tesla shares is among the highest on Wall Street. Yet he sees even further upside in the future thanks to Tesla's leadership with artificial intelligence (AI). The near-term value comes from autonomous driving potential. And Ives thinks Tesla will become a $2 trillion company, not including its potential in robotics.
That makes the stock a buy for the near and long term, according to Ives. I believe that to be true, as long as Tesla follows through with launching self-driving cars this year.
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