- Tesla stock reached a $1 trillion valuation on Friday for the first time since April 2022.
- Tesla stock surged 27% since Trump's election win on Tuesday, boosting Elon Musk's net worth.
- Tesla has a competitive advantage if Trump gets rid of EV subsidies during his 2nd term, according to Wedbush.
Tesla stock hit a $1 trillion market valuation for the first time since April 2022.
The stock surged as much as 7% on Friday to an intra-day peak of $319.44, and shares have soared 27% since Donald Trump was declared the winner of Tuesday's presidential election.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk was a huge back of Trump's campaign in its final few months and donated over $100 million to efforts to reelect him.
The massive gain in Tesla stock this week catapulted Musk to a net worth of about $300 billion, solidifying his position as the world's richest person, according to Bloomberg data.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said Trump's win, while potentially negative for the broader electric vehicle sector, could significantly benefit Tesla.
That's because while federal EV rebates and tax incentives would likely be withdrawn during Trump's second term, Tesla can navigate such a scenario, while its competitors will likely struggle.
"Tesla has the scale and scope that is unmatched in the EV industry and this dynamic could give Musk and Tesla a clear competitive advantage in a non-EV subsidy environment, coupled by likely higher China tariffs that would continue to push away cheaper Chinese EV players (BYD, Nio, etc.) from flooding the US market over the coming years," Ives explained in a note this week.
A potential wave of deregulation could also fast-track Tesla's Full Self-Driving platform to market. Tesla's premium valuation has largely hinged on its progress in delivering a fully autonomous vehicle, so investors would likely cheer any progress on that front.
Shares of Tesla are up 26% year-to-date, in-line with gains of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100.