Tesla Deliveries Come In Below Expectations, Stock Drops

Tesla Motors Inc. said Monday that it delivered fewer than 15,000 cars in the first quarter, including 2,400 units of its latest model, the Model X. Tesla shares declined 2% in late trading as the total of 14,820 came in short of the electric-car maker's projection of approximately 16,000 deliveries. While maintaining a goal of delivering 80,000 to 90,000 cars in the calendar year, Tesla admitted that production of the latest all-electric vehicle introduced by the company, the Model X, was hemmed by a shortage in parts. "The Q1 delivery count was impacted by severe Model X supplier parts shortages in January and February that lasted much longer than initially expected," the company reported in a statement. "Once these issues were resolved, production and delivery rates improved dramatically." Tesla stock hit its highest prices since September 2015 on Monday, as Chief Executive Elon Musk said advance orders for the company's next offering, the lower-priced Model 3, surpassed a quarter-million since its unveiling last week.