Tesla's Autonomous Future: Wedbush Predicts 'Golden Age' with $500 Price Target

Tesla shares can rally more than 45% as 'golden age' nears, says Wedbush's Dan Ives

Tesla shares can rebound with an era of major autonomous vehicle-related growth on the horizon, according to Wedbush Securities. Analyst Dan Ives upped his price target on the electric vehicle maker by $150 to $500, which suggests shares can surge 46.6% over the next year. This also marks a new high for Tesla price targets on Wall Street, per LSEG. "We believe the golden age of autonomous is now on the doorstep for Tesla with the Austin launch next month kicking off this key next chapter of growth for Musk & Co.," Ives wrote in a Friday note to clients. "We are raising our price target ... reflecting this massive stage of valuation creation ahead." Ives also reiterated his outperform rating on the stock. The majority of analysts polled by LSEG have similarly bullish ratings, according to LSEG. The analyst noted the stock faced a "dark chapter" earlier this year as CEO Elon Musk's role leading President Donald Trump's contentious government efficiency initiative rattled investors. But with Musk bolstering his commitment to leading Tesla, Ives said traders can now shift their focus to the company's role in what the analyst called the artificial intelligence revolution. Ives said the opportunity tied to AI and autonomous vehicles should be worth at least $1 trillion for Tesla. The company could see its valuation rise near $2 trillion in the next 12 to 18 months, he added. "We believe the vast majority of valuation upside looking ahead for Tesla is centered around the success of its autonomous vision taking hold," Ives said. He also said that the company can be "one of the best pure plays on AI over the next decade." Shares climbed more than 1% before the bell on Friday. That marks a turn for the stock, which has dropped more than 15% in 2025. TSLA YTD mountain Tesla shares in 2025

Tesla stock gets a huge price-target hike as Wedbush hails 'golden age of autonomous growth'

Tesla (TSLA) might have been in the news recently for all the wrong reasons, but that's not stopping Wedbush from issuing one of Wall Street's most bullish calls on the company in months. In a note Friday morning, analyst Dan Ives raised Tesla's price target from $350 to $500, saying "the golden age of autonomous is now on the doorstep for Tesla." The price hike is part of Ives' larger vision for the company: a possible $2 trillion market cap by the end of 2026 in a "bull case scenario." The potential catalyst? The long-promised launch of Tesla's robotaxi service, which CEO Elon Musk claims will debut in Austin by the end of June -- a "key next chapter of growth," according to Ives. Wedbush's price hike reflects this "massive stage of valuation creation ahead." But Wedbush's vision of Tesla is less about cars and more about code. "We have never viewed Tesla simply as a car company," Ives wrote. "Instead we have always viewed Musk and Tesla as a leading disruptive technology global player and the first part of this grand strategic vision has taken shape over the past 5 years." Ives sees Tesla as a platform positioned to capitalize on the convergence of autonomous driving and AI -- an "AI revolution" that could eventually put Tesla in the same league as Nvidia (NVDA), Microsoft (MSFT), Palantir (PLTR), Amazon (AMZN), Meta (META), OpenAI, and Alphabet (GOOGL). "We believe Tesla remains the most undervalued AI play in the market today," Ives said. "The core focus for investors is the AI Revolution is now coming to Tesla...which will make Tesla one of the best pure plays on AI over the next decade." Ives said AI and autonomous are worth at least $1 trillion for Tesla. And the "golden goose"? The EV-maker's Full Self-Driving (FSD) software, which has recently been more broadly rolled out. Wedbush said the automaker could see FSD adoption rates rise past 50% "and change the financial model/margins for Tesla looking ahead." Still, the road to autonomy is littered with setbacks. Tesla's FSD system has faced regulatory scrutiny and safety concerns for years, although Ives speculated that the close ties between Musk and President Donald Trump could help pave the way for fewer regulatory hurdles. And Musk's timelines for autonomous Teslas have come and gone without delivery; FSD remains driver-assist tech, requiring a human at the wheel. Tesla also isn't alone in the robotaxi push -- Alphabet's Waymo and Uber (UBER) are still major contenders in the U.S., and China's Baidu (BIDU) is pushing forward on robotaxis abroad. Still, Ives believes Tesla has a leg up on the competition. "Given its unmatched scale and scope globally," he wrote, "we believe Tesla has the opportunity to own the autonomous market and down the road license its technology to other auto players both in the US and around the globe." Wedbush maintains its "Outperform" rating on Tesla, even as Ives warned that the stock's trajectory will be volatile. "Rome was not built in a day," he wrote, "and neither will Tesla's autonomous and robotics strategic vision."

Wall Street cheers as Tesla gets massive price target boost, Dan Ives predicts a golden age of autonomous growth

Even with recent troubles, an expert says Tesla has a bright future thanks to its self-driving tech and AI. He thinks it could grow a lot if everything goes right, and robotaxis may be a big part of it.Wall Street is super excited about Tesla again, even though the company has had bad news lately. Tesla has been in the news for some bad stuff lately, but a company called Wedbush still believes in it. Dan Ives, a top analyst at Wedbush, just gave Tesla a huge boost, he raised Tesla's stock price target from $350 to $500, says reports. He said this is because we're entering a "golden age of autonomous" tech, which means self-driving cars and robots. Ives even thinks Tesla's market value could reach $2 trillion by the end of 2026, but only if everything goes super well, he calls it the "bull case", as per reports. The big reason? Musk declared that by the end of June, Austin will see the launch of Tesla's robotaxi. Ives says this is a "key next chapter of growth." Ives says this is a huge chance for Tesla to make even more money. He doesn't see Tesla as just a car company, he sees it as a tech company that's changing the game. Ives believes Tesla is part of the big AI revolution, just like Nvidia, Microsoft, Palantir, Amazon, Meta, OpenAI, and Alphabet. He thinks Tesla is the most undervalued AI company right now, meaning it's worth more than people think. The main reason? Tesla's Full Self-Driving software. It's already being used more widely now. Ives also believes that over 50% of Tesla owners might start using FSD, which would change Tesla's profits and business model in a big way.He says the combo of AI and self-driving tech is worth at least $1 trillion to Tesla, according to the reports. But there are problems too, Tesla's FSD has had issues with safety and government rules for years. FSD still needs a human driver, it's not 100% self-driving yet. Other companies are also working on robotaxis, like Alphabet, Uber, and Baidu. Still, Ives says Tesla is better than the rest because it's so big and global. He thinks Tesla could even sell or license its tech to other car companies around the world. Wedbush is still telling investors to buy Tesla stock, they call it an "Outperform" rating. But Ives warns that Tesla stock will have ups and downs, and says building something huge takes time, "Rome wasn't built in a day." Q1. What is Tesla's new stock price target? Dan Ives from Wedbush raised it to $500. Q2. When is Tesla's robotaxi expected to launch? By the end of June as per Elon Musk.

TSLA Stock Jumps In Friday Premarket As Wedbush's Dan Ives Raises Price Target To $500, Citing 'Golden Age Of Autonomous' Vehicles - Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (NASDAQ:QQQ), SPDR S&P 500 (ARCA:SPY)

Renowned tech bull Dan Ives has significantly raised his price target for Tesla Inc. TSLA to $500, signaling a strong bullish outlook driven by the imminent arrival of what he terms the "golden age of autonomous" vehicles. What Happened: Ives conveyed his updated stance via an X post, emphasizing the pivotal role of upcoming developments for the electric vehicle giant. "We believe the golden age of autonomous is now on the doorstep for Tesla with the Austin launch next month kicking off this key next chapter of growth for Musk & Co.," stated Ives. His revised price target reflects an anticipation of substantial future value creation for the company. "we are raising our price target to $500 reflecting this massive stage of valuation creation ahead," Ives added, underscoring the profound impact he expects autonomous technology to have on Tesla's market capitalization. The price target for the company stood at $350 per share before the update, thus representing a 42.85% increase. The "Austin launch" next month appears to be a key catalyst in Ives' assessment, suggesting that the expansion of Tesla's autonomous capabilities and related initiatives from its Austin facility will be a major driver of this new growth phase for Elon Musk's enterprise. See Also: Stock Market Is Underpricing 'Downside Risks Of The Tariff Rates,' Warns Expert: Tariff Policy Nuances Are 'Far More Important' Than The 'One Big, Beautiful Bill' Why It Matters: According to Benzinga Pro, Tesla shares are trading at a price nearly 158.730 times its 2026 earnings. At the same time, the average forward price-to-earnings of its peers stood at 25.75 times, implying that Tesla was 6.16 times more expensive than its industry's average. Get StartedEarn 7.2% -- No Matter What the Fed Does Markets expect rate cuts -- but your earnings don't have to suffer. Lock in 7.2% until 2028 from ten individual bonds. Get Started The shares were down 10.08% year-to-date, but it has returned by 36.01% just in the last month. TSLA was up 96.29% over the year. On Thursday, it ended 1.92% higher, and it advanced 1.40% in premarket on Friday. Meanwhile, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF QQQ, which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were flat in premarket on Friday. The SPY was down 0.026% to $583.00, while the QQQ declined 0.099% to $513.52, according to Benzinga Pro data. TSLA has a consensus 'hold' with a consensus price target of $292.93, according to the 27 analysts tracked by Benzinga. The targets range from $19.05 to $500. Recent ratings by Mizuho, Wedbush, and Guggenheim suggest a $303.33 target, implying a 12.26% downside. Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings shows that Tesla had a stronger price trend over the short, medium, and long term. Its momentum ranking was solid, however, its value ranking was poor at the 8.76th percentile. The details of other metrics are available here. Read Next: Growth Vs. Value: Expert Views Collide On The Impact Of Trump's 'Big, Beautiful' Bill Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Image Via Shutterstock QQQInvesco QQQ Trust, Series 1$514.050.01%Stock Score Locked: Want to See it? Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Reveal Full ScoreEdge RankingsMomentum71.90Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewSPYSPDR S&P 500$583.250.03%TSLATesla Inc$345.511.31%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Tesla 'The Most Undervalued AI Play' Today, Says Dan Ives - Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Tesla Inc TSLA bull and analyst Dan Ives has raised the price target on the electric vehicle stock once again ahead of an upcoming robotaxi launch. The Tesla Analyst: Wedbush analyst Ives maintained an Outperform rating on Tesla and raised the price target from $350 to $500. Read Also: Tesla Q1 Misses Estimates As Tariff Pressures Weigh On Outlook, Lower-Cost EVs Still On Track The Analyst Takeaways: Tesla is set to benefit from a new era of autonomous vehicles, Ives said in the new investor note. "We believe the golden age of autonomous is now on the doorstep for Tesla with the Austin launch next month kicking off this key next chapter of growth for Musk & Co.," Ives said. The analyst said the kickoff will help provide a "massive stage of valuation creation ahead." Ives said Tesla started 2025 with a dark chapter due to Musk's role in President Donald Trump's administration, a move that created brand damage for the company and put a "black cloud over the story." The analyst said those days are in the rear-view mirror, and Musk is now committed to leading Tesla into the autonomous and robotics future. "We believe the core focus for investors is the AI Revolution is now coming to Tesla ... which will make Tesla one of the best pure plays on AI over the next decade." Ives said the majority of valuation upside for Tesla stock ahead comes from the autonomous vision and the June launch in Austin, ushering in the next era of growth. "We estimate the AI and autonomous opportunity is worth at least $1 trillion alone for Tesla." Tesla could see autonomous vehicle items get fast-tracked by the new Trump administration, Ives adds. "We believe Tesla could reach a $2 trillion market cap by the end of 2026 in a bull case scenario." Ives said he has never viewed Tesla "simply as a car company," with valuation metrics counting on future revenue from items like autonomous driving, FSD, AI and robotics. "We believe Tesla remains the most undervalued AI play in the market today. Rome was not built in a day ... and neither with Tesla's autonomous and robotics strategic vision." TSLA Price Action: Tesla stock is down 1.09% to $337.33 on Friday at publication versus a 52-week trading range of $167.41 to $488.54. Tesla stock is down 11.2% year-to-date in 2025, while shares are up over 90% in the last year. Read Next: Here's How Many Vehicles Tesla Has Delivered, Produced In Each Quarter Since 2019 Photo: Shutterstock TSLATesla Inc$337.92-0.91%Stock Score Locked: Edge Members Only Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Unlock RankingsEdge RankingsMomentum92.93Growth91.95Quality86.30Value8.76Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewMarket News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs