Tesla Results Top Estimates

(RTTNews) - Electric car maker Tesla Motors, Inc. (TSLA) said Wednesday after the markets closed that its second quarter loss narrowed sharply from last year, as revenue surged amid strong sales of its Model S electric luxury sedan.

The company's quarterly earnings per share, excluding items, also beat analysts' expectations as did its quarterly revenue.

"While profits were still modest in absolute terms and not our primary mission, net income increased by 70% from last quarter, driven by record Model S deliveries and a significant improvement in automotive gross margin," said Elon Musk, Tesla CEO and Chairman.

Tesla shares are currently gaining 12.87% in after hours trading after closing the day's regular trading session at $134.23, down $7.92 or 5.57%. The shares trade in a 52-week range of $26.86 to $145.73.

For the second quarter ended June 30, 2013, the Palo Alto, California-based company reported a net loss of $30.5 million or $0.26 per share, compared to a net loss of $105.6 million or $1.00 per share for the year-ago quarter.

Excluding lease accounting, certain non-cash items, and one-time charges, adjusted net income for the second quarter was $26.3 million or $0.20 per share, compared to an adjusted net loss of $93.2 million or $0.89 per share in the prior year quarter.

On average, 10 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report a loss of $0.17 per share for the second quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items..

Total revenue for the second quarter jumped to $405.14 million from $26.65 million in the same quarter last year. Eleven analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $383.40 million for the second quarter.

The company delivered 5,150 Model S cars during the second quarter, surpassing its target of 4,500 deliveries.

The company also improved its production rate by 25% from 400 to almost 500 vehicles per week during the quarter.

Going forward, the company expects to be profitable on an adjusted basis and generate positive cash flow from operations every quarter this year excluding any benefit from ZEV credits.

The company said it plans to deliver slightly over 5,000 Model S vehicles in the third quarter and remain on plan to deliver 21,000 vehicles worldwide for 2013.