Monday, September 16, 2013

Tesla Has Helped Bring Panasonic Back From the Dead (TSLA; 6752)

Maybe "Back from the dead" is a bit strong but Panasonic is definitely one of those "Whatever happened to..." companies.
From Pulse 2.0:

Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) Helps Bring Panasonic Corporation (6752) Back To Profitability 
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has helped Panasonic Corporation (TYO:6752) hit profitability again.  In just one year, Panasonic went from losing around $20 million to hitting a profit of $40 million, mainly because of the success of Tesla Motors.

The demand that Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has for lithium-ion 18650 cells is driving a lot of revenue for Panasonic Corporation (TYO:6752), according to Lux Research.  Tesla’s demand for the batteries is driving more revenue for Panasonic than Toyota and Volkswagen.

“Tesla’s battery demand now outweighs all other OEMs in the U.S., taking 49% of the market share for battery capacity shipped in the U.S. plug-in and hybrid market in Q2 2013,” stated Lux Research.  “A mere 20,000 Tesla Model S units use three times more battery capacity than the U.S. sales of Toyota’s popular Prius hybrid family.”

Panasonic Corporation (TYO:6752) and Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) have been partners for the last three years.  Panasonic invested $30 million into Tesla Motors back then.  Panasonic now supplies Tesla Motors with the cells that they need for the estimated 16,000 Model S electric luxury sedans that the company is expected to produce this year alone.  This accounts for around $400 million in revenues for Panasonic....MORE