GigaOm: How Tesla Will Try to Keep Its Stock Up

Tesla’s debut on the Nasdaq yesterday was met with a shockingly hearty embrace. The electric car maker started the day at $19 on Tuesday, above its estimated range of $14 to $16, and as of the middle of the day on Wednesday traded as high as $30.42. That’s despite the fact that as columnist Drew Voros put it: “Like the emperor with no clothes, Tesla is a company with no financial fundamentals that warrant it being a public security, much less one that pops on its first day of trading.”

That’s the problem right there. Instead of focusing on making their product great, they’re focusing on profitability. It’s going to cloud their vision, because if they’re (hypotheticallly) willing to do anything to keep their stock up, that (potentially) includes degrading their product.