Tesla stock (NASDAQ: TSLA) continued to climb on Friday following news that Model Y vehicles would completely qualify for electric vehicle tax credits. The stock has risen over 77 percent so far this year after a broad market downturn that widely hurt the tech and automotive sectors in 2022.
Tesla stock is up over 2 percent on Friday but is climbing closer to $200 per share after nearly sinking below $100 levels earlier this year. Mostly affected by lower-than-expected delivery figures for 2022, Tesla shares have rebounded in January thanks to a few bullish moves the automaker initiated in early 2023, including a variety of price cuts in several markets that brought affordability back into the picture for the all-electric company.
The stock rise through January was mostly caused by price cuts of up to $13,000 across its lineup, which increased demand and orders for its cars. Despite Tesla’s healthy order log for its vehicles, a variety of supply chain pressures over the past few years have forced the automaker to increase prices and phase out more affordable trim levels. Tesla, which has had one of the healthiest margins per vehicle in the entire industry for some time, bit the bullet and brought prices down just a week into the new year, surging demand and, more importantly for investors, the stock.
The surge in stock price has sent Tesla up nearly 78 percent this year, and with new developments this morning attached to the IRS list of vehicles that qualify for additional EV tax credits, the stock is climbing again.
Credit: IRS
Tesla fans and prospective buyers were stunned when several Model Y crossover trim levels were not included in the list of vehicles that would qualify for the $7,500 credit. However, discussions last week between Elon Musk and several high-ranking officials in Washington, D.C., may have been the deciding factor in the definition of an SUV being more widely available to vehicles that were on the cusp of qualifying. Several Model Y vehicles did not meet the prerequisites for what the government considered an “SUV.”
However, the revisions have resulted in the Model Y’s complete lineup being considered as SUVs, which increases the MSRP limit for the tax credit to $80,000, up from its previous $55,000 mark.
Tesla Model Y’s complete lineup now qualifies for EV tax credits through Inflation Reduction Act
Tesla’s disruption of the automotive industry continues to have investors and analysts alike considering it the leader in EVs. Despite increased competition from legacy automakers and highly-notable EV startups, Tesla still remains the king of the hill to this point, and the inclusion of the company’s extremely popular Model Y crossover lineup in the IRS’s qualifying vehicles list only points in the direction of positivity for the automaker.
Disclosure: Joey Klender is a TSLA Shareholder.
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