Tesla reported third-quarter earnings on Wednesday that beat analysts’ expectations, even as revenues narrowly missed expectations.

Here’s what the company reported, compared to what Wall Street expected, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

• Earnings per share: 72 cents, adjusted versus 58 cents expected
• Gain: $25.18 billion versus $25.37 billion expected

Revenue rose 8% in the quarter, compared to $23.35 billion a year earlier. Net income rose to about $2.17 billion, or 62 cents per share, from $1.85 billion, or 53 cents per share, a year ago.

Profit margins were boosted during the quarter with $739 million in automotive regulated loan revenue. Automakers are required to obtain a certain number of regulatory credits each year. If they don’t meet the target, they can buy credits from companies like Tesla, which has excess credits because it only makes electric vehicles.

Automotive revenues rose 2% to $20 billion from $19.63 billion in the same period a year earlier and have been broadly flat since the end of 2022. Revenue from energy generation and storage rose 52% to $2.38 billion, while revenue from services and other services, including revenue from non-warranty repairs of Tesla vehicles, rose 29% to $2.79 billion.

In a shareholder deck, Tesla boasted that it had reached 7 million vehicles produced as of October 22 and that its latest offering, the Cybertruck, became the third best-selling all-electric vehicle in the US, behind only the Model 3 and Model Y. Tesla breaks down sales not per model.

Although Tesla’s angular steel pickup was plagued by quality issues, the company still sold more than 16,000 Cybertrucks in the U.S. in the third quarter, according to Kelley Blue Book estimates. Tesla said in the release that the Cybertruck “achieved positive gross margin for the first time.”

CEO Elon Musk said on the earnings call that his “best guess” is that auto growth will be 20% to 30% next year, due to “cheaper vehicles” and the “advent of autonomy.”

Musk also said Tesla has developed an app that some workers in California have been able to use this year.

“You can request a ride and it will take you anywhere in the Bay Area,” he said. “We do have a safety driver for the time being.”

Musk said he expects the service to be rolled out for public use in California and Texas next year. The company wants to use it for a robotaxi network in the future.

Earlier this month, Tesla reported 462,890 car deliveries in the third quarter. Deliveries are the closest to Tesla’s reported sales. The company also said it had produced 469,796 electric vehicles in the period ending September 30.

Although shipments rose 6% from a year earlier, they fell short of analyst expectations and followed two consecutive quarters of year-over-year declines. Tesla offers a range of discounts and incentives to boost sales.

“Despite ongoing macroeconomic conditions, we expect to achieve modest vehicle delivery growth in 2024,” the company said in its earnings statement on Wednesday. The company also reiterated its goal to ‘launch’ more affordable models in the first half of 2025.

Tesla is facing increasing competitive pressure, especially in China, from companies such as BYD and Geely, along with a new generation of automakers including Li Auto and Nio. In the US, older car manufacturers Ford And General engines are starting to sell more electric vehicles, despite the decline in previous electrification commitments.

The earnings report comes less than two weeks after a highly anticipated robotaxi event that left shareholders wanting more details, and lands about two weeks before the presidential election, which has taken up a chunk of Musk’s schedule lately as he campaigned for former President Donald Trump.

According to investor queries via the online platform Say Technologies, a significant number of shareholders want to know how Musk’s pro-Trump activism will affect Tesla and its stock price.

Before Wednesday’s midday break, the stock was down 18% in October, heading for its worst month since January. For the year, shares are down 14%, while the Nasdaq is up 22% over that stretch.

Musk has spent tens of millions of dollars to get Trump back into the White House, even though the former president does not support the kinds of federal spending on electric vehicles, charging infrastructure and environmental regulations that Tesla has benefited from for years.

Musk also said at a recent event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that he views many government agencies and regulations in the US as ineffective and unnecessary.

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