Sonu Kalra, Portfolio Manager at Fidelity Investments, says Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) has been a top contributor toward performance over the past year, and that his firm was able to identify it early as a blue-chip company.
“This was a company we became familiar with from its IPO. I’m not a car enthusiast at all, but I had the opportunity to drive one of their roadster models as part of their road show; you can call it due diligence. It was a life-changing experience, or as one of my colleagues puts it, an ‘iPhone experience.’ We all remember the first time we used an iPhone,” Kalra said.
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Kalra says the key differentiator was Tesla’s ability to commercialize its battery technology into a luxury car.
“While other auto OEMs were targeting their electric vehicles at the mass market, they were coming in at price points that were more appropriate for luxury car market — Tesla was going to market targeting the luxury market with a luxury car and thus priced appropriately.” Kalra said.
“We became convinced that not only would they be able to commercialize the Model S but also be very successful by only taking a small amount of market share of the overall luxury car market,” Kalra added.
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