NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 00:16 ET — Market closed
- Tesla ended Friday down 2.1% at $475.19, underperforming a flat broader market in thin post-holiday trade. 1
- Regulators’ focus on autonomous-vehicle safety intensified after a San Francisco blackout snarled Alphabet’s Waymo robotaxis. 2
- Investors are also watching a U.S. safety probe into Model 3 emergency door releases and this week’s Fed minutes. 3
Tesla shares closed down 2.1% on Friday at $475.19, after touching a session low of $473.82, according to market data. 1
The move matters because Tesla’s valuation increasingly hinges on its autonomy ambitions, and the regulatory bar for driverless operations is moving in real time. A tightening rulebook can slow deployments and raise compliance costs for companies selling the “self-driving” story. 2
Over the weekend, a Reuters report on Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Waymo highlighted how a San Francisco power outage this month left robotaxis stalled at intersections when traffic lights went dark, renewing calls for stricter oversight. California regulators said they are looking into the incident. 2
“This is just a shot across the bow,” said Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon University autonomous-technology expert, referring to the Waymo incident and what it could signal for future emergencies. 2
Waymo said its vehicles are designed to treat non-operational signals as four-way stops, but they can request confirmation from human staff. The company said it is implementing fleet-wide updates after a concentrated spike in confirmation requests slowed responses and contributed to congestion. 2
The episode is being watched across the sector because Tesla (TSLA.O) and rivals are pushing to scale driverless fleets. Reuters said robotaxi operators often rely on “teleoperation” — industry shorthand for remote human help — when vehicles run into edge cases. 2
Tesla’s stock has also faced more traditional safety scrutiny. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a defect investigation into an estimated 179,071 model-year 2022 Model 3 sedans over concerns that emergency door release controls may not be easy to find or identify in a crisis. 3
A defect investigation is the agency’s first step in a review process that can lead to a recall, but it does not mean one will be ordered. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Reuters reported. 3
The broader market offered few catalysts on Friday. All three major U.S. indexes closed slightly lower in a light-volume, post-Christmas session, as traders watched whether the seasonal “Santa Claus rally” — the last five trading days of the year and the first two of the next — will hold. 4
Tesla ended last week below its 52-week high of $498.83, leaving it vulnerable to sharper moves during thin year-end trading, when a small burst of orders can move prices more than usual. 5
Before Monday’s session, investors will also be tracking the week’s macro calendar. The Federal Reserve’s meeting minutes are due Tuesday, and markets will be closed Thursday for New Year’s Day. 6
For Tesla specifically, attention is turning to near-term company updates that can reset expectations quickly. The next widely watched data point is the company’s quarterly production and deliveries release, which Tesla typically publishes soon after a quarter ends. 7
Tesla is also expected to report earnings in late January; Yahoo Finance’s earnings calendar lists January 28, 2026 as the next report date. 8
Traders will be watching whether Tesla can hold above Friday’s low near $474 and whether regulatory headlines — on robotaxis or vehicle-safety design — add pressure during the final three sessions of 2025. 1
