Tesla Q3 Revenue Beats at $28.05B as Deliveries of 486,532 Drain Inventory — Model S and X Production Ends

Tesla reported third-quarter 2026 results on October 21, beating Wall Street revenue estimates. The Austin automaker posted revenue of $28.05 billion against analysts’ average estimate of $27.88 billion, per LSEG data, while free cash flow came in at $1.53 billion — a surprise versus the roughly $4.92 billion cash burn analysts expected. Adjusted net income slid 4% to $1.7 billion as heavy spending on AI and robotaxis weighed on profit, and capital expenditure totaled $4.73 billion, well below the roughly $7.5 billion Wall Street had penciled in.

Deliveries rebounded to 486,532 vehicles, beating expectations of about 461,100, though they were still down about 2% from a year earlier. Deliveries outpaced production of 464,391 vehicles by more than 22,000 for a second consecutive quarter, continuing an inventory drawdown. Model 3 and Model Y made up nearly all deliveries; the Cybertruck and other models accounted for just 8,295, down from 12,364 in the second quarter. Tesla said it has now passed 10 million cumulative vehicles delivered and that the Model Y is on track to be the world’s best-selling vehicle this year.

The company confirmed it has stopped production of the Model S and Model X at Fremont, replacing those lines with its first large-scale Optimus humanoid robot line — a literal statement of the shift from cars to robotics. Services and other revenue — FSD subscriptions, the robotaxi business and EV charging — grew 33% and was the quarter’s growth driver, while core automotive revenue fell 3% and energy storage dropped 16%. Tesla’s shares fell about 3.5% in after-hours trading as Musk declined to discuss the SpaceX merger talks.