Why Tesla Stock Fell After Q1 Deliveries

By Howard Smith – Apr 2, 2026 at 12:21PM ESTKey PointsTesla Q1 deliveries rose versus the year-ago period, but were 14% lower than the fourth quarter. Energy storage had been showing rapid growth, but was a big disappointment. Investors are now looking toward earnings on April 22. Tesla (TSLA 5.40%) announced first-quarter vehicle deliveries today, and they weren't overly impressive. The company delivered nearly 360,000 electric vehicles (EVs) at the start of the year, but Wall Street expected even more. That wasn't the only disappointment, though. Tesla shares plunged on the news. Here are the other reasons the stock was down 4.2% at 12:20 p.m. ET. Image source: The Motley Fool. What Tesla investors are really watching EV sales aren't what Tesla investors are focusing on anymore. That business is being viewed as a funding mechanism for its loftier goals related to self-driving robotaxis, related artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, and its energy storage business. While more details on AI and robotaxi deployment probably won't be available until Tesla reports first-quarter earnings on April 22, the energy business's first-quarter results were very disappointing. Tesla reported the lowest amount of energy storage products deployed since Q3 2024. The 8.8 GWh (gigawatt-hour) that were put in service was a sharp drop from 14.2 GWh last quarter. ExpandNASDAQ: TSLATeslaToday's Change(-5.40%) $-20.59Current Price$360.67Key Data PointsMarket Cap$1.4TDay's Range$359.15 - $370.2552wk Range$214.25 - $498.83Volume3.1MAvg Vol62MGross Margin18.03% Analysts didn't mince words about the company's update. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives called it an "underwhelming" way to start the year. Investment manager Gary Black noted that the surge in oil prices should boost EV sales. He noted there was "no way for Tesla to spin this as a positive result with oil price up." The gist is that there wasn't much to like from Tesla's update today. All eyes will now be on how soon the company tells investors it plans to roll out its driverless vehicle fleet during its April 22 conference call. Read NextApr 1, 2026 •By Thomas NielTesla Fans Could Be the Next Big Wave of SpaceX InvestorsApr 1, 2026 •By Lyle DalyThe Largest Companies by Market Cap in April 2026Apr 1, 2026 •By Daniel MillerAmazon Is Starting to Put Tesla in the Rearview MirrorApr 1, 2026 •By Lee SamahaWhere Will Tesla Stock Be in 5 Years?Apr 1, 2026 •By James BrumleyWho Is Tesla's Top Competitor?Mar 31, 2026 •By Eric TrieStock Market Today, March 31: Tesla Rises Ahead of Delivery Report as Rally Eases Demand ConcernsAbout the AuthorHoward Smith is a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst covering technology and industrial stocks. Prior to The Motley Fool, Howard spent nearly 30 years supervising quality and operations in the steel industry, mostly with leading steel company Nucor. He holds a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering from Lafayette College and a master’s degree in environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins University.TMFBuilt2LastStocks MentionedTeslaNASDAQ: TSLA$359.90(-5.60%)-$21.36*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.