Tesla’s Optimus Reportedly Hits Production Snags — StoneX Stays Bullish Ahead Of Q3 Vehicle Deliveries

According to The Information, Tesla is facing challenges in producing the robot’s hands and dealing with supplier constraints.

• Tesla is reportedly aiming to establish a production line capable of making more than 1,000 Optimus robots per week by year-end.           
• StoneX reiterated its ‘Buy’ rating and $475 target, while forecasting about 446,500 Tesla vehicle deliveries in Q3, down 10%.
• StoneX expects 16.2 GWh of energy-storage deployments by Tesla.

Tesla (TSLA) was in focus on Friday after StoneX remained bullish on the EV giant ahead of its third-quarter vehicle delivery numbers, even as a new report pointed to manufacturing challenges as the company ramps up production of its Optimus humanoid robot.

According to The Information, Tesla is struggling to reliably manufacture its Optimus humanoid robots at scale, with the robot’s complex hands and supplier constraints among the biggest challenges.

Despite the issues, production has increased roughly tenfold in recent months, reaching several hundred robots per week in August, according to the report. Tesla is aiming to have a production line capable of producing more than 1,000 units per week by year-end. 

At the time of writing, TSLA shares were down 2%.

Why StoneX Kept A Buy Rating

Meanwhile, StoneX remains bullish on Tesla’s broader outlook. The brokerage reiterated its ‘Buy’ rating and $475 price target, while forecasting about 446,500 vehicle deliveries for the third quarter (Q3). That would represent a 7% sequential decline and a 10% drop from a year earlier.

However, despite the expected drop in auto volumes, StoneX sees Tesla’s fast-growing energy business providing some support to its earnings. The firm expects Tesla to deploy 16.2 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of energy storage products, up 20% from the previous quarter.

Tesla’s energy-storage business has remained a bright spot, with the company deploying 13.5 GWh of storage products in the second quarter (Q2), following a record 46.7 GWh in 2025. Recently, production of its next-generation Megapack 3 battery energy storage system (BESS) began at its new Texas facility.

StoneX said it will also watch vehicle pricing, product mix, and inventory to determine whether Tesla can support demand without offering additional incentives.

What’s Wall Street’s View?

Other analysts have very different expectations heading into Tesla's Q3 delivery report, which is expected in early October.

Goldman Sachs recently slashed its estimate to 435,000 vehicles from 490,000, citing weaker-than-expected sales trends in Tesla’s largest markets — the U.S., China and Europe. Strength in export markets, including Southeast Asia, South America, and Australia, could partly offset that weakness, Goldman said.

Barclays is considerably more optimistic, forecasting 475,000 deliveries, while UBS expects 470,000 deliveries. UBS said its estimate would still represent a roughly 5% decline.

Meanwhile, Cox Automotive expects Tesla’s U.S. Q3 sales to slump more than 30%.

Retail’s Take On TSLA

Retail sentiment surrounding TSLA turned ‘neutral’ from ‘bearish’ over the past 24 hours.

TSLA has shed more than 15% so far this year, and is by far the worst-performing stock among its Mag 7 peers.

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