Detroit: Tesla overcame a seven-week pandemic-related shutdown at its US assembly plant to post a surprising $ 104 million net profit for the second quarter.
It was the company’s fourth-straight positive quarter, qualifying it to be included in the S&P 500 index of corporate titans.
Local government restrictions forced the electric car and solar panel maker to close its only US assembly factory in Fremont, California, from 23 March to 11 May . The company paid roughly 10,000 workers for part of the shutdown and continued health care and other benefits.
Excluding one-time items such as $347 million in stock-based compensation, Tesla made $2.18 cents per share. That beat Wall Street estimates of a break-even quarter, according to FactSet. Revenue was down 4.9 per cent from a year ago to $6.04 billion for the quarter. That still beat estimates of $5.15 billion.
The company said its progress in the first half of the year has positioned it for success in the second half as production output continues to improve.