Another Tesla analyst just slashed his price target for the 3rd time this year ahead of critical delivery numbers (TSLA)

Reuters/Bobby Yip; Business Insider/Dave Smith

UBS on Friday cut its Tesla price target to $160 from $200, citing profits and deliveries concerns.
It was the third time this year analyst Colin Langan cut his target.
He also lowered his earnings estimates for this year through 2023.
Track Tesla shares here in real time.

Tesla shares slipped on Friday after UBS cut its price target on the electric-car maker’s stock for the third time this year, citing concerns over second-quarter profits and deliveries for this year’s second half.

Like the vast majority of his Wall Street peers, analyst Colin Langan carries a "sell" rating on the stock, and lowered his target to $160 from $200 per share. He also lowered his earnings estimates for this year through 2023.

Langan started out the year with a $230 target before chopping that down in January and again in April amid questions over underlying vehicle demand.

That new target implies a drop of 28% from current levels. The stock wasn’t trading far from that level just last month, when it meandered around a 2 1/2-year low. Shares have enjoyed a relief rally in recent weeks.

"As we expect margin headwinds & slowing deliveries, we remain bearish," Langan wrote.

He added: "We expect losses in the second half to increase as deliveries likely soften and the impact of pricing actions continues to weigh on margins."

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The firm’s outlook comes even as Langan thinks the stock will see a short-term bounce on the back of Tesla’s closely monitored quarterly delivery figures. Those numbers are expected sometime next week.

The analysis highlights the turmoil the company has found itself in this year, reflected in its volatile stock price that’s only just begun to recoup some of its recent losses.

A long line of Wall Street analysts have cut their price targets, earnings estimates, and delivery expectations amid questions over underlying demand and profitability. Goldman Sachs, for its part, lowered its Tesla price target last week for the fourth time this year.

Notably, the new vehicle tracker UBS laid out on Friday suggests "deliveries in Europe thus far have been relatively muted," and "well below" the level seen in March. Deliveries in China, too, appear to be weakening.

UBS

Investors will closely watch Tesla’s second-quarter delivery figures following first-quarter results that fell short of Wall Street’s expectations. Elon Musk’s automaker reported it delivered around 63,000 vehicles during that time, a 31% drop from the prior quarter.

Documents viewed by Business Insider’s Mark Matousek earlier this month suggest Tesla has not met a Model 3 production goal Musk set in late May.

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