Tesla Gains as Wedbush Hikes Target to $600 on AI Growth

Tesla Rises as Wedbush Lifts Price Target to $600 on AI Momentum

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) ticked up roughly 1.5% in early Friday trading after Wedbush raised its price target to $600 and reiterated an Outperform rating. The driver: a faster path to AI-driven initiatives inside the company.

For equity teams, the signal is clear. The call leans on software and AI optionality that can expand margins beyond hardware and drive multiple support if execution holds.

Why the call matters

Auto is cyclical; software is not. Wedbush's view centers on Tesla's progress in autonomy and AI infrastructure, which could unlock higher-margin, recurring revenue streams over time.

Faster AI timelines reduce the "when" risk embedded in most models. If autonomy and software scale, the earnings mix shifts, and so does the valuation framework.

What to watch

• FSD adoption and software attach rates versus vehicle deliveries.
• Regulatory milestones for supervised and unsupervised autonomy in key markets.
• AI compute and training progress (model improvements, fleet data scale).
• Gross margin ex-credits and pricing discipline across core models.
• Capex cadence for AI infrastructure and its ROI path.

Portfolio takeaways

If your model treats AI as a distant call option, revisit probabilities and timing. A shorter path to commercialization can add meaningful value to the out-years and justify a higher multiple today.

Balance that with position sizing. Execution, regulation, and competitive ADAS progress remain the swing factors.

Key risks

• Autonomy timelines slip, delaying software revenue inflection.
• Safety or regulatory setbacks that limit deployment scale.
• Margin pressure from price cuts or mix shift before software ramps.
• Higher-for-longer rates compressing growth multiples.

How to approach the setup

Run scenarios with incremental software ARPU, attach rates, and varying rollout speeds. Stress-test valuation on both EBIT and FCF with and without AI contribution.

Define invalidation points: delivery growth, margin floors, and autonomy milestones that would change your stance-long or short.

For primary sources on autonomy and AI strategy, see Tesla's official materials on Autopilot and AI infrastructure. Tesla Autopilot

If you're building AI capability inside an investment team-research workflows, modeling, and automation-this curated list can help: AI tools for finance.