With the second quarter of 2022 in the rearview mirror, many companies are releasing their Q2 earnings reports. Tesla is one of those companies and it reported a profit of $2.26 billion in Q2 2022. While that’s better than the company’s Q2 2021 profit of $1.1 billion, it’s down around 31% from the $3.3 billion in Q1 2022. Also included in the letter to investors was the news that Tesla has sold off 75% of its $1.5 billion Bitcoin investment, netting the company $936 million.
Change of heart?
That Bitcoin investment was made last year, a few months before the entire crypto market burst into flames and dove off a cliff. Tesla’s earnings report states that its “digital assets” now total $218 million, down from $1.2 billion in previous quarters. We’re certain that the remainder isn’t made up entirely of Bitcoin, as Musk states the company hasn’t sold any of its Dogecoin.
During the streamed investor call, Musk touches on the crypto sale. He said it shouldn’t be taken as the company’s whole view on Bitcoin. He says the company’s need for cash came thanks to closures in China due to COVID shutdowns. Sure, that’s plausible but is it the whole truth? Whether it is or not, it’s the story the company is sticking to.
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But the numbers aren’t everything. The company has been in the spotlight for a variety of other reasons that don’t make for particularly great optics. Musk, whose name is intertwined with the company (even though he technically bought his way in), seems to make headlines every day. His $44 billion deal to buy Twitter was stalled, then it was on. Then it stalled again. And now… it’s off. Kinda. Musk is due in court over his Twitter antics extremely soon.
Source: The Verge