For the second time in its history Tesla Motors Inc. reported net income, making $22 million net for the third quarter. This month, Tesla said it delivered 24,500 cars in the third quarter, putting it on track to hit its goal of 50,000 vehicle sales for the second half of 2016.
A significant part of Tesla’s third quarter revenue came from pollution credits it sold to other automakers. In the third quarter, Tesla booked $139 million in those credits, up from $39 million a year ago. The company said it expects revenue from those credits to decline in the fourth quarter. Quarterly revenue more than doubled compared with the third quarter of 2015, coming in at $2.3 billion compared with $937 million.
Tesla shares rose 4.3 percent in after hours trading to $211.00 as of 7:38 pm ET. Some investors had worried that Tesla would not post a profit since it is gearing up for Model 3 production - an expensive undertaking. The Model 3 has been well-received and has 373,000 preorders. Tesla said the plan to start selling the Model 3 in the second half of 2017 is on track.
