Will Tesla Continue to Outperform with the Opening of the West Coast Supercharger Corridor?

With shares of Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA) trading around $161, is TSLA an OUTPERFORM, WAIT AND SEE, or STAY AWAY? Let's analyze the stock with the relevant sections of our CHEAT SHEET investing framework.

T = Trends for a Stock’s Movement

Tesla Motors designs, develops, manufactures, and sells electric vehicles and electric vehicle powertrain components. The company also provides services for the development of electric powertrain systems and components, and sells electric powertrain components to other automotive manufacturers. It markets and sells its vehicles through Tesla stores as well as over the Internet. Consumers and companies are looking to save at the pump, and what better way to do so than with electric vehicles?

Tesla's West Coast Supercharger Corridor is officially open for business. Tesla announced the opening of the network via an official blog post Wednesday, and the kickoff is just one more check on Musk's to-do list as he works to create a Supercharger network that spans the U.S. from coast to coast. Though the CEO still has a long way to go to meet his final goal, the West Coast Supercharger network now connects a new slew of stations that will allow Model S travelers to journey between San Diego, California, and Vancouver, British Columbia — all for free.

T = Technicals on the Stock Chart Are Strong

Tesla Motors stock has been exploding higher in the past several months. The stock is currently trading near all-time high prices and looks ready to continue. Analyzing the price trend and its strength can be done using key simple moving averages. What are the key moving averages? The 50-day (pink), 100-day (blue), and 200-day (yellow) simple moving averages. As seen in the daily price chart below, Tesla Motors is trading in between its rising key averages, which signals neutral price action in the near-term.

Source: Thinkorswim

Taking a look at the implied volatility and implied volatility skew levels of Tesla Motors options may help determine if investors are bullish, neutral, or bearish.

	Implied Volatility (IV)	30-Day IV Percentile	90-Day IV Percentile
Tesla Motors Options	76.54%	40%	38%

What does this mean? This means that investors or traders are buying a significant amount of call and put options contracts as compared to the last 30 and 90 trading days.

	Put IV Skew	Call IV Skew
November Options	Average	Average
December Options	Average	Average

As of Thursday, there is average demand from call and put buyers or sellers, all neutral over the next two months. To summarize, investors are buying a significant amount of call and put option contracts and are leaning neutral over the next two months.

E = Earnings Are Mixed Quarter Over Quarter

Rising stock prices are often strongly correlated with rising earnings and revenue growth rates. Also, the last four quarterly earnings announcement reactions help gauge investor sentiment on Tesla Motors’s stock. What do the last four quarterly earnings and revenue growth (Y-O-Y) figures for Tesla Motors look like and, more importantly, how did the markets like these numbers?

	2013 Q2	2013 Q1	2012 Q4	2012 Q3
Earnings Growth (Y-O-Y)	105.62%	113.95%	-1.27%	-66.67%
Revenue Growth (Y-O-Y)	1420.08%	1762.78%	677.88%	-13.13%
Earnings Reaction	14.34%	24.39%	-8.77%	8.92%

Tesla Motors has seen mixed earnings and rising revenue figures over the last four quarters. From these numbers, the markets have been buzzing about Tesla Motors’s recent earnings announcements.

P = Excellent Relative Performance Versus Peers and Sector

How has Tesla Motors stock done relative to its peers – General Motors (NYSE:GM), Toyota (NYSE:TM), and Ford (

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) — and sector?

	Tesla Motors	General Motors	Toyota	Ford	Sector
Year-to-Date Return	376.9%	30.32%	38.73%	32.43%	34.82%

Tesla Motors has been a relative performance leader, year to date.

Conclusion

Tesla Motors offers electric vehicles that consumers and companies are opting for over other luxury vehicles. The company recently announced the opening of its West Cost Supercharger Corridor. The stock has been exploding higher recently and is now trading near all-time high prices. Over the last four quarters, earnings have been mixed while revenues have been rising, which has left investors upbeat about the company. Relative to its peers and sector, Tesla Motors has been a year-to-date performance leader. Look for Tesla Motors to continue to OUTPERFORM.