Tesla's Q3 report on October 21: what to watch

Tesla reports third-quarter results on October 21, 2026, after the US market close — that is October 22, 02:30 in Tashkent. This is the first part of our earnings-season series: what is known before the report and what to watch. After the report we will compare expected and actual numbers.

Tesla

What happened

On October 2 Tesla said it delivered 486,532 vehicles in Q3. The company-compiled analyst consensus was 461,974 — about 24,000 more (Tesla release).

Year over year, though, that is 2.1% lower: in Q3 2025 Tesla delivered a record 497,099 vehicles, as US buyers rushed before the EV tax credit expired (Electrek). Don't confuse deliveries with production (464,391) — cars from inventory were sold too.

The energy business (large batteries) came in below expectations: 13.7 GWh deployed versus ~15.9 GWh expected.

What EPS and "consensus" mean

EPS (earnings per share) is the company's profit divided per share. On report day the market looks first at this number and at revenue, then compares them with the analyst consensus (the average of many analysts' estimates). The stock often reacts to the gap from expectations rather than to the number itself. More on the season in our earnings season guide.

As of October 17, 2026, the consensus for Tesla is EPS ~$0.45 and revenue ~$27.9 billion (MarketBeat). Sources differ slightly ($0.43–0.45), so we say "about".

What last quarter showed

In the Q2 report in July, Tesla sold more than expected (revenue $28.24 billion), but EPS came in at $0.33 — analysts had expected around $0.50. The main reason was margins: gross margin fell to 16.8% (investingLive). Selling more is not the same as earning more.

What to watch in the report

1. Margins — how much profit is left from every $100 of sales. Did the higher deliveries turn into profit?
2. Energy — deployments came in below expectations; how does that show up in revenue and profit?
3. Guidance — what management says about the next quarter and the year. Sometimes the stock reacts more to this than to last quarter's numbers.

After the Roadster event we wrote: a show is not profit yet — watch the numbers. October 21 is exactly that day. TSLA's current halal screening status is on the TSLA page.

After the report we will compare expected and actual numbers here.

For information only — not investment advice. Figures refer to the dates shown; estimates may change before the report.