New York, March 4, 2026, 16:10 EST — After-hours trading.
- On Wednesday, Tesla shares jumped roughly 3.4%, closing at $406.10.
- Bank of America resumed coverage, slapped a buy on the stock, and set the price target at $460.
- Europe was still grabbing attention—UK sales dropped, and EU filings flagged a shift for Tesla’s 2026 emissions-credit pooling.
Tesla (TSLA.O) climbed 3.4% Wednesday, closing at $406.10 after Bank of America issued a bullish note. Shares fluctuated from $389.60 up to $408.29 over the course of the session.
This shift is significant: Tesla’s stock often reacts sharply to ratings shifts, sometimes coloring the session’s mood. Investors are still wrestling with how to value Tesla’s autonomy and robotics bets, all while gauging if the company’s main car business can stabilize amid heavier competition.
Europe is making noise too: fresh monthly sales figures, some regulatory-credit moves, and ongoing labor disputes at Tesla’s sole European factory are all landing at once. Individually, these stories may not move markets every day, but they’re often enough to tilt sentiment fast.
Bank of America is back with coverage on Tesla, tagging the stock with a “buy” and eyeing a $460 target, Investopedia reports. Tesla, they wrote, is “the current leader in consumer autonomy” and primed to move fast into robotaxi services. The note highlights upside tied to driver-assistance tech, Optimus robots, and energy storage as well. Investopedia
An EU filing lists Stellantis, Toyota and Subaru as absent from Tesla’s 2026 carbon-credit “pool,” a system automakers use to combine fleets and trade credits to stay within EU CO2 limits. Stellantis isn’t part of the Tesla Pool for 2026 “currently,” though the company left the door open to joining later. Toyota Europe said automakers can opt in until December 2026—“it’s too early to confirm if we need to pool or not,” a spokesman told Reuters. Reuters
Tesla shifted 2,208 cars in the UK last month, a steep 45.2% slide from February last year, according to figures from New Automotive. BYD, on the other hand, booked a 40.9% jump, reaching 968 sales. New Automotive also flagged that Tesla’s year-to-date sales are off by 5%—notable, given the brand’s reputation for choppy delivery numbers. “It is fantastic to see one in four motorists opting for an electric car in February,” said Ben Nelmes, chief executive at New Automotive. Reuters
IG Metall came up short again in its bid to win control over the works council at Tesla’s Grünheide factory outside Berlin, Reuters reported. The union picked up 13 out of 37 seats. Works councils—employee-elected—handle labor talks with management. IG Metall has the upper hand at companies like Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes, but Tesla remains a tough nut. “Unfortunately, it was not enough to secure a … majority,” said Laura Arndt, the union’s lead candidate. Reuters
That combination is another headache for investors. Regulatory credits often move the profit needle, and Europe remains the real proving ground for both demand and pricing—Tesla’s Berlin plant anchors its manufacturing presence in the region.
Still, the upgrade’s bullish thesis hinges on both execution and regulatory progress—neither known for speed. A hiccup in Tesla’s driver-assist adoption, any holdup with the robotaxi rollout, or a drop in automaker demand for EU pooling deals (thanks to loosened timelines) could quickly sap momentum. Tesla’s stock, for its part, has shown it doesn’t take much to reverse course.
Coming up Thursday (March 5), U.S. traders will be tracking for any momentum after the upgrade, plus fresh European registration numbers. Eyes also stay on whether automakers jump into—or steer clear of—Tesla’s 2026 emissions-credit pool, with the December 2026 deadline still looming.
