Whitney Tilson’s email discussing the smartest guys in the room eerily describes Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and a chart on Tesla vs. Enron.
This is a very insightful piece of work – the parallels are really striking…
Q1 hedge fund letters, conference, scoops etc
The Smartest Guys in the Room eerily describes Tesla
Here are a few (this isn’t even the entire list!):
- Blaming the shorts and the media
- Banks and analysts complicit
- Aggressive fan boys against the shorts
- Large investors started dumping shares
- Nepotism, the company is mine
- The CEO was a visionary genius
- Unstable CEO, harassing employees
- Pushover board
- The company was good for humanity and disrupting dinosaurs
- Good ideas but unrealistic
- Fake it till you make it
- Thought they were a startup
- Slippery Slope
- Lying about layoffs
- Expert in everything
- Financial manipulations at end of Quarter
- Unwilling to raise capital
- Bad Credit rating
- Refinancing Debt
- Cash problems
- Young inexperienced CFO
- Customer deposits boosting cash balance
- 70 billion valuation
- Larry Ellison
- Jim Chanos
- Attacking the WSJ
- 2 billion doesn't last long
- Aimed to be the largest company
- Failed massive partnership, blamed the partner for supply problems
The first post at the end captures beautifully the mistake Tesla bulls are making, confusing their concern about humanity with their investment in the stock (a really dangerous rookie mistake):
The difference is, Tesla is really doing a service to humanity with their products. And people love their products. Many people support Tesla because they want to support a company that can positively change the world for the better. I am one of them, I only own 7 shares, but I will hold it as long as I can because I believe in the impact they can and will have on the world. Musk puts his personal money where his mouth is and is risking his personal fortune because he believes in the cause. It's not just about the money, this is why he has my support. I wish more people would stand behind this company. It really is a good company with a good cause. 0 cars produced in 2011, 500,000 will be produced this year, a Nationwide charging network, a product people love that is good for the environment compared to other options, and a leader seeking to do good. Why wouldn't you support them?
Tesla vs. Enron chart
Follow up on Saturday’s email (above), check out this chart:
