Tesla’s stock price closed at $649.86 on the New York Stock Exchange. It fell 6.5 percent from the previous day when it was officially included in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. Reportedly, Tesla stock fell due to Apple which announced self-driving EV production.
Tesla took up 1.69% of the S&P 500. It ranks fifth after Apple, Microsoft (MS), Amazon, and Facebook.
Analysts say that the plunge was due to investors who sell Tesla shares to realize profits. The shares have soared more than 730% this year alone, However, Tesla’s stock fell to its lowest as soon as Reuters reported Apple’s EV announcement.
Apple AEV, the down of Tesla?
Reportedly, Apple will enter the self-driving car market with the aim of producing self-driving cars by 2024. Reuters quoted officials familiar with the issue as saying that Apple is studying ways to develop its own innovative battery technology.
Apple has been operating a vehicle project, the “Project Titan” since 2014. But the project has been backpedaling as it once focused on software. However, after Doug Field returned to Apple in 2018 and fired 190 of his team members last year, two officials said the company is aiming to manufacture cars for consumers. Field was a former vice president from Apple to U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla.
However, two officials said that Apple’s target period could be longer until or after 2025 due to the global pandemic.
Apple’s goal to build mass-market cars contrasts with rivals such as Weimo of Alphabet. It manufactured robo taxis to carry passengers without drivers.
Accordingly, the heart of Apple’s strategy is a new battery design. The design reportedly can drastically reduce battery costs and increase vehicle mileage.
Instead of increasing the capacity of cells in the battery and removing pouches and modules, it is possible to increase the mileage of vehicles by designing a design that adds more active substances. Apple is also studying ways to make a safe LFP battery because it is less likely to overheat than a lithium-ion battery.
