Charged: Tesla sinks as Elon Musk seeks to form new political party

Institutional investors and professional traders rely on The Fly to keep up-to-the-second on breaking news in the electric vehicle and clean energy space, as well as which stocks in these sectors that the best analysts on Wall Street are saying to buy and sell.

From the hotly-debated high-flier Tesla (TSLA), Wall Street’s newest darling Rivian (RIVN), traditional-stalwarts turned EV-upstarts GM (GM) and Ford (F) to the numerous SPAC-deal makers that have come public in this red-hot space, The Fly has you covered with “Charged,” a weekly recap of the top stories and expert calls in the sector.

TESLA UNDER PRESSURE: Shares of Tesla are falling after the company’s CEO Elon Musk announced over the weekend the formation of a new political party. William Blair this morning downgraded its rating on Tesla to Market Perform, citing negative implications from President Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill and Musk’s foray back into politics. “Investors are growing tired of the distraction at a point when the business needs Musk’s attention the most and only see downside from his dip back into politics,” William Blair told investors. Musk over the weekend said via X, “By a factor of 2 to 1, you want a new political party and you shall have it! When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom…Backing a candidate for president is not out of the question, but the focus for the next 12 months is on the House and the Senate.”

Click here to check out Tesla’s recent Media Buzz Sentiment as measured by TipRanks.

ROBOTS: Though Tesla’s vehicle sales fell 13.5% in Q2, continuing a sales slump amid rising competition and shifting consumer preferences, CEO Elon Musk is prioritizing autonomous vehicles and robots, despite cars generating most of Tesla’s revenue, The Wall Street Journal’s Becky Peterson and Sean McLain report. “I’d encourage people to look beyond the bumps and potholes of the road immediately ahead of us,” Musk told investors in April. “Lift your gaze to the bright shining citadel on the hill.”

FALLING BEHIND: Tesla’s market share has shriveled while other Chinese automakers have become more popular and Chinese consumers say the vehicles feel increasingly tired and out of touch with local tastes, Raffaele Huang, Lingling Wei, and Yoko Kubota of The Wall Street Journal reports. Top China-designed EVs come with features not normally found in Teslas. Additionally, Musk’s reputation as a partner for Beijing in Washington took a hit after his relationship with Donald Trump soured.

DELIVERIES: In the second quarter, Tesla produced over 410,000 vehicles, delivered over 384,000 vehicles and deployed 9.6 GWh of energy storage products.

Rivian announced production and delivery totals for the quarter ending June 30. The company produced 5,979 vehicles at its manufacturing facility in Normal, Illinois and delivered 10,661 vehicles during the same period. Production was limited during the second quarter in preparation for model year 2026 vehicles expected to launch later this month. Production and delivery results for the quarter are in line with Rivian’s outlook. Rivian is also reaffirming its 2025 delivery guidance range of 40,000 to 46,000 vehicles.

Lucid Group (LCID) announced production and delivery totals for the quarter ended June 30. During this period, Lucid produced 3,863 vehicles and delivered 3,309 vehicles. During the six months ended June 30, 2025, Lucid produced 6,075 vehicles and delivered 6,418 vehicles.

Li Auto (LI) announced that it delivered 36,279 vehicles in June. This brought the company’s second-quarter deliveries to 111,074. As of June 30, Li Auto’s cumulative deliveries reached 1,337,810. “I extend my sincere gratitude to all our users, partners, shareholders, and employees for being part of our growth. Your support has been the foundation of our success,” commented Xiang Li, chairman and chief executive officer of Li Auto. “As we embark on the next decade, we are committed to sustained investments in our products and technologies, while intensifying efforts to elevate our brand. Recently, we proudly sponsored the Aranya Theater Festival and the Jiangsu Football City League, cultivating our brand’s emotional value via art and sport while exploring diverse avenues to build multidimensional resonance with users. Over the next ten years, through our long-term, persistent dedication, I hope Li Auto will provide users with not only cutting-edge technology and caring services, but also happiness and companionship rooted in emotional bonds.”

XPeng (XPEV) announced its vehicle delivery results for June and the first half of 2025. In June, Xpeng delivered 34,611 Smart EVs, representing a year-over-year increase of 224% and marking the eighth consecutive month that deliveries exceeded 30,000 units. In the second quarter of 2025, Xpeng delivered 103,181 Smart EVs, setting a new quarterly record. This brings Xpeng’s total deliveries for the first half of 2025 to 197,189 Smart EVs, surpassing its full-year 2024 total deliveries.

Nio (NIO) announced its June and second quarter delivery results. The company delivered 24,925 vehicles in June, representing an increase of 17.5% year-over-year. The deliveries consisted of 14,593 vehicles from the company’s premium smart electric vehicle brand Nio, 6,400 vehicles from the company’s family-oriented smart electric vehicle brand Onvo, and 3,932 vehicles from the company’s small smart high-end electric car brand Firefly. The company delivered 72,056 vehicles in the second quarter of 2025, representing an increase of 25.6% year-over-year. Cumulative deliveries reached 785,714 as of June 30.

Zeekr (ZK) announced its delivery results for June. In June, Zeekr Group delivered a total of 43,012 vehicles across its Zeekr and Lynk & Co brands. Of this total, the Zeekr brand delivered 16,702 vehicles, while Lynk & Co accounted for 26,310 vehicles. Year-to-date, Zeekr Group has delivered 244,877 vehicles, representing a 14.5% growth compared to the same period last year.

EQUITY INVESTMENT: Following its second quarter of gross profit in Q1, Rivian (RIVN) received a $1B equity investment from Volkswagen (VWAGY) at an effective price of $19.42 which represents a 33% premium to the $14.56 30-trading day volume-weighted average stock price. The investment is part of the $5.8B agreement associated with the Rivian and Volkswagen Group technology joint venture.

BETTER THAN FEARED: JPMorgan says that while amount of tax incentives was reduced compared to the Inflation Reduction Act, the Big Beautiful Bill act “is materially better than feared” for clean energy. With policy certainty restored, investor sentiment should improve and generalist investors will revisit the space again, the analyst tells investors in a research note. JPMorgan believes domestic manufacturing and utility-scale renewables fared better than residential solar in the final version of the bill, but it points out residential solar “was certainly better than feared.” Fuel cells are again eligible for the clean electricity investment credit, which is a positive for Bloom Energy (BE) and FuelCell (FCEL), according to JPMorgan. It sees positives in the bill for Sunrun (RUN), SolarEdge (SEDG), Enphase Energy (ENPH), First Solar (FSLR), Nextracker (NXT), and Array Technologies (ARRY).

BUY SUNRUN: BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Sunrun (RUN) to Outperform from Neutral with a price target of $21, up from $10. The firm expects Sunrun to build on its commercial wins as its market leadership grows, the analyst tells investors. After the passing of Trump’s “OBBB” Act with a last minute save, Sunrun’s tax credits are “not only ‘safe’ through early-30s, but RUN almost becomes the Resi Solar industry,” as small, fragmented competitors that are less capitalized “do not post a serious threat,” especially after Sunnova Energy’s (NOVA) bankruptcy, BNP argues.