-- Tesla (TSLA) reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter results as the electric vehicle manufacturer benefited from demand growth in Asia Pacific and South America.
Adjusted earnings increased to $0.41 per share from $0.27 a year earlier, compared with the consensus on FactSet of $0.36. Revenue rose 16% to $22.39 billion, higher than Wall Street's $22.10 billion view.
Tesla's shares were up 3.7% in after-hours trading. The stock is down nearly 14% this year through Wednesday close.
"Our focus on affordability and utility across our vehicle lineup continues to be a key competitive advantage, particularly as gas-powered alternatives become more expensive due to their reliance on a more sensitive and less flexible energy supply chain," the company said.
Tesla reported vehicle demand growth in Asia-Pacific and South America, as well as a rebound across North America and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Consolidated automotive revenue grew 16% to $16.23 billion, while the energy generation and storage segment fell 12% to $2.41 billion.
Earlier this month, the company posted a sequential decline in first-quarter deliveries, missing Wall Street's estimates. At the time, Wedbush Securities said the EV maker faced a tough demand environment and European regulatory hurdles for its Full-Self Driving software.
Besides demand concerns, rising costs and slow progress on Robotaxi and Optimus have weighed on Tesla's share price, UBS Securities said in a note last week.
Tesla said Wednesday it made "meaningful progress" on the build out of the infrastructure and artificial intelligence software that underpins its Robotaxi and future robotics businesses.
"We are excited about Tesla's positioning in 2026 with tailwinds persisting for the autos business, our continued progress on FSD (Supervised), the ramp of Robotaxi, progress on Optimus ahead of mass production and the growth of our energy production capacity," the company said.