US carmaker Tesla beats revenue forecasts but sees profit drop a day after Elon Musk floats a trillion-dollar SpaceX merger
Elon Musk, who admits he is a 'conflicted party' unable to sit in on merger talks now being run by special committees at both SpaceX and Tesla.SpaceX's Starship rocket lifting off from Boca Chica, Texas. Elon Musk's company posted a $4.4bn quarterly profit, reversing a loss of about $1bn a year earlier, as talks over a merger with Tesla continue.
Tesla posted $28.05bn in third-quarter revenue, beating the $27.88bn analysts had forecast, after the company delivered 486,532 cars against expectations of around 461,100. Automotive revenue nonetheless fell 3% year on year, with heavy spending on AI and robotaxis weighing on margins. Elon Musk told investors there is 'a lot of merit' in combining the firms. Any deal would require approval from 50% of Tesla shareholders.
SpaceX shares jumped nearly 10% on the merger talk, and Tesla rose more than 3%.
Musk commands roughly 85% of SpaceX's voting power but holds only around 20% at Tesla.
Analyst Dan Ives puts the chance of a merger by the end of 2027 at 80-90%.
