Tesla published its quarterly financials ahead of an investor call this afternoon. The maker of electric vehicles has become an increasingly polarized brand but a valuable one: $1.21 trillion at the time of writing. And we knew from its delivery announcement earlier in April that the first quarter of 2026 was rather rosy, with sales growing by a little more than 6 percent compared to the same three months in 2025. As a result, it was a more profitable quarter than last year, making $477 million in net income.
Revenue increased by 16 percent year over year to $22.4 billion. Automotive revenue grew by the same percentage to $16.2 billion, and Tesla saw a 42 percent increase in services (like Supercharger fees) and other revenue. But its energy storage business shrank in Q1, and revenues from this division fell by 12 percent to $2.4 billion.
An operating margin of 4.2 percent is far from the double-digit margins Tesla once boasted. But things were twice as bad in 2025. Although the company brought in more money from automotive sales, it only made $380 million from selling regulatory credits, compared to $595 million in Q1 2025. It also made less money from leasing. Operating expenses rose due to spending on AI and part of the $1 trillion compensation package that shareholders approved in November for CEO Elon Musk.
