Tesla beats revenue estimates, falls short on earnings

Tesla shares dropped in extended trading after the firm posted a fourth-quarter profit that fell short of expectations but beat on revenues.

The carmaker turned in a second-consecutive quarterly profit after the bell on Wednesday, as it assured investors that its results and outlook for 2019 were not as bad as some had initially feared.

Earnings per share came to $1.93 each, short of the $2.20 expected on the street, while revenues shot to $7.23bn - ahead of the $7.08bn predicted by analysts.

On an adjusted basis, Tesla made $139.5m in the quarter, a marked turnaround from the loss of $675.4m recorded in the same quarter a year earlier.

Tesla also said its cash position had improved substantially to $145bn, despite having spent $230m on repaying convertible bonds throughout the quarter. It also assured investors that it had "sufficient cash on hand" to "comfortably settle" its convertible bond set to mature in March 2019.

The Californian firm also guided towards higher revenues in 2019 as it looks to up production and deliveries by 45-65% during the year.

As of 2210 GMT, Tesla shares had dipped 1.49% in after-hours trading to $304.17 each.