Elon Musk’s eye-watering $25.3 billion Tesla payday

The world’s richest man has just become even wealthier, with a record profit for one of his companies. But the billionaire still has his sights set on Twitter.

Elon Musk’s electric car manufacturer Tesla has smashed experts’ estimates making a whopping $US18.8 billion ($A25.3 billion) in revenue in just the first three months of this year, despite a controversial few months for the eccentric entrepreneur.

Revenue for the car company was up an incredible 81 per cent compared to the same time last year and beat analysts’ expectations, which had pegged revenue to hit $US17.8 billion ($A24 billion).

Tesla’s shares jumped by 4 per cent after the figures were announced.

But a bumpier road ahead has been flagged for the company as it battles production disruptions in China due to Covid outbreaks and subsequent lockdowns, alongside the rising cost in materials and chip shortages.

The company noted in a statement that soaring increases in the price of materials as well as the supply chain issues “remained persistent”.

“Our own factories have been running below capacity for several quarters as supply chain became the main limiting factor, which is likely to continue through the rest of 2022,” Tesla said.

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Tesla has reported record profits and revenue. Picture: John Thys/AFP

Tesla has been raising prices in response to soaring costs but this hasn’t impacted demand for its cars with deliveries up by 68 per cent in the first three months of the year. This saw its profit jump to $US3.3 billion ($A4.4 billion).

“The inflationary impact on our cost structure has contributed to adjustments in our product pricing, despite a continued focus on reducing our manufacturing costs where possible,” the company said.

It had delivered 310,000 cars between January and March, up from 184,877 at the same time last year.

In a conference call to investors, Musk, the world’s richest person, predicted the company would produce 1.5 million cars this year. Last year, Tesla made roughly 930,000 cars.

But Credit Suisse has forecast the challenges could reduce the company’s output by around 90,000 vehicles in the second quarter of 2022.

However, Musk said opening sites in Germany and Texas would improve its output and economies in the future.

Elon Musk is the world’s richest person. Picture: Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Time

Tesla has also signalled software sales, with an advanced drive-assistance feature which costs $US12,000 ($A16,000) upfront, will also aid the company’s profitability.

The skyrocketing rise of Tesla has helped Musk to accumulate a net worth of $US260 billion ($A349 billion) – nearly $US100 billion ($A134,000) more than his closest rival Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

The company’s results came as Musk took markets on a wild ride after becoming a majority shareholder in Twitter and then making an offer to buy the social media giant outright.

However, there are concerns that Musk may sell Tesla stocks or use them to borrow additional money to finance his $US43 billion ($A57 billion) bid for the social media platform.

Tesla reported first quarter earnings that far exceeded analyst expectations with revenue of $18.76 billion compared to expectations of $17.80 billion. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/AFP

Tesla chief Elon Musk has launched a hostile takeover bid for Twitter. Picture: Olivier Douliery/AFP

It also comes amid several legal challenges brought against Musk and his company, with Tesla facing multiple discrimination lawsuits.

He settled a lawsuit last week accusing him of deceiving Tesla shareholders but a gag order has prevented him from sharing any details.

Investors would be watching Musk’s activities outside of Tesla, including his move on Twitter, to see whether it would impact his ability to run the company, said Alyssa Altman, analyst at the consultancy firm Publicis Sapient.

“It is critical that he continues to instil confidence that he has his hands on the wheel and is driving the complex business of Tesla in the right direction,” she told The Guardian.