Tesla Did Not Buy or Sell Any Bitcoin in the Fourth Quarter

Electric car maker Tesla (TSLA) did not buy or sell any bitcoin in the fourth quarter for the second straight quarter, the company reported Wednesday in its latest earnings report.

The value of its digital assets at the end of the quarter was $184 million, down from $218 million at the end of the third quarter due to impairment charges from a decline in bitcoin's price. At the end of the third quarter, the price of bitcoin was slightly under $20,000, while at the end of the fourth quarter it was around $16,500.

Tesla also made no changes to its bitcoin holdings in the third quarter, but in the second quarter the company surprised some investors by selling $936 million worth of bitcoin, or approximately 75% of its total holdings, in order to raise cash due to uncertainty over COVID-19 lockdowns in China. But CEO Elon Musk said at the time the company was open to increasing its bitcoin exposure in the future and that the sale “should not be taken as some verdict on bitcoin."

Overall for the fourth quarter, Tesla reported adjusted earnings per share of $1.19, ahead of the consensus of analyst estimates reported to FactSet of $1.13 a share, on revenue of $24.3 billion, below analyst estimates of $24.7 billion. Shares of Tesla were down 0.3% to $143.95 in after-hours trading Wednesday.

A company call with analysts is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. ET (21:30 UTC).

UPDATE (Jan. 25, 21:37 UTC): Added additional context and overall earnings numbers.

Disclosure

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.