Tesla reported record sales in the fourth quarter of 2020.
Tesla
The American electric vehicle and clean energy company have revealed they sold more cars in 2020 than ever before, as demand for electric vehicles and alternative energy solutions have skyrocketed.
What’s more, the company’s shared surged almost 700 percent over the year, making it the world’s most valuable car manufacturer.
According to Rebecca Crook, chief growth officer at digital agency Somo, Tesla’s popularity has been helped by the fact that governments around the world have been "setting tougher targets for switching to electric vehicles".
She told BBC News: "Tesla had an incredibly successful 2020, joining the likes of Amazon as the unofficial 'winners' of a turbulent year.
"It's been a challenging past 12 months for car manufacturers. It's critical for Tesla to maintain this momentum because its success sends optimism into the wider automotive industry."
Tesla – which is owned by Elon Musk - saw steady sales and profitable quarters in 2020 as other car manufacturers were hit by the effects of the COVID-19 crisis, as it delivered a record 180,570 vehicles in the fourth quarter alone, although it narrowly missed its overall 2020 goal of half a million deliveries.
In a statement, the brand said: "Over a multi-year horizon, we expect to achieve 50% average annual growth in vehicle deliveries. In some years we may grow faster, which we expect to be the case in 2021.”
However, despite record sales, investor focus on “profitability” was lower than the marked had expected.
Nicholas Hyett, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, told BBC News: "We think that reflects the shift from premium Model S and X vehicles to lower priced Model 3s and Model Ys.
"Tesla will argue ... as more vehicles are fed through production lines profitability will improve. That's true, but it relies on global demand for an ever-increasing number of Teslas."