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TSLA
Tesla, Inc. · Electric Vehicles
$322.08
-18.14% this month
VERSUS
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COMPARE
NIO
NIO Inc. · Electric Vehicles
$4.88
-1.81% this month
Scoreboard verdict
Across AI score, momentum, valuation, upside, operating margin
TSLA
2
NIO
2
Comparison scoreboard
MIXED SETUPAI Score
TSLA ✓70.0
NIO 23.6
1Y Return
TSLA ✓+6.43%
NIO +0.21%
Fwd P/E
TSLA 140.23
NIO ✓4.10
Target Up.
TSLA +27.98%
NIO ✓+53.28%
Op. Margin
TSLA 1.41%
NIO N/A
Metrics last refreshed: 8/4/2026
Quick take
TSLA vs NIO Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
TSLA and NIO compete directly in the premium EV segment globally, with China as the key battleground. Tesla has scale, profitability, and global manufacturing. NIO has innovative battery swap technology, strong brand community, and growing Chinese market presence. Both face intense Chinese EV competition from BYD. Tesla's profitability and global scale give it a fundamentally stronger financial position; NIO's battery swap differentiation and community create a niche positioning but financial sustainability remains challenging.
TSLA vs NIO — Tesla (the global EV market leader with manufacturing scale, Supercharger network standard, FSD autonomous capability, and energy division creating an integrated EV and energy ecosystem) versus NIO (the premium Chinese EV innovator with battery swap station infrastructure enabling 3-minute battery exchange and strong lifestyle community positioning in China and expanding to Europe).
Live analysis · updated 8/4/2026
TSLA and NIO are closely matched — they split the tracked metrics evenly. TSLA has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+6.43% vs +0.21%), though NIO has the better forward P/E setup (4.10x vs 140.23x for TSLA). Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for NIO (+53.28%) than for TSLA (+27.98%).
Normalized 1Y performance
TSLA
NIO
Recent returns
TSLA
NIO
Analyst price targets & sentiment
TSLA
Price target range
analyst mean$398.30
current price$322.08
+28.0% upside to analyst mean
NIO · 24 analysts
STRONG BUYHOLDSTRONG SELL
Buy (1.7/5.0)
Price target range
analyst low$4.03
analyst high$10.03
analyst mean$7.37
current price$4.88
+53.3% upside to analyst mean
Who should consider this stock?
TSLA may suit investors who:
- →want global EV leadership exposure with Tesla's manufacturing scale, Supercharger network standard, and autonomous driving AI investment across multiple continents
- →believe Tesla's FSD and Robotaxi represent autonomous driving upside that no Chinese EV competitor has yet matched in real-world deployment scale
- →prefer Tesla's profitability and financial strength vs NIO's ongoing large losses requiring continued capital raises
- →are comfortable with Tesla's premium valuation, China market share pressure from domestic competitors, and Elon Musk's brand controversies in politically sensitive markets
NIO may suit investors who:
- →believe battery swap technology will prove superior to fast charging for premium EV users — the 3-minute battery swap eliminating waiting is a genuine convenience differentiator
- →want direct Chinese premium EV market exposure at potentially lower cost than Tesla's premium valuation on a growing platform
- →see NIO's lifestyle community positioning (NIO Houses, app ecosystem) as creating premium brand loyalty that differentiates it from commodity EV competitors in China
- →are comfortable with NIO's ongoing financial losses, intense domestic Chinese EV price competition, battery swap infrastructure capital costs, and geopolitical risk for a Chinese company trading in the US
Performance & AI score
| Metric | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 70.0 | 23.6 |
| AI rank | #37 | #3450 |
| Latest close | $322.08 | $4.88 |
| 1M return | -18.14% | -1.81% |
| 6M return | -23.64% | +2.31% |
| 1Y return | +6.43% | +0.21% |
$10,000 invested — hypothetical growth (dividends reinvested)
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.41K (+4.1%) started 2025-08-04 | $10.02K (+0.2%) started 2025-07-31 |
| 5Y ago | $13.52K (+35.2%) started 2021-08-05 | $1.06K (-89.4%) started 2021-08-02 |
| 10Y ago | $210.02K (+2000.2%) started 2016-08-05 | $7.39K (-26.1%) started 2018-09-12 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
Valuation & upside potential
| Metric | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $1.23T | N/A |
| Trailing P/E | 285.51 | N/A |
| Forward P/E | 140.23 | 4.10 |
| Price/Sales | N/A | 0.89 |
| EV/Revenue | 11.60 | 0.17 |
| Analyst target | $398.30 | $7.37 |
| Target upside | +27.98% | +53.28% |
Growth, profitability & risk
| Metric | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 25.50% | 112.20% |
| Earnings growth | -3.00% | N/A |
| EPS growth | -3.00% | N/A |
| FCF margin | +4.67% | N/A |
| Operating margin | 1.41% | N/A |
| Profit margin | 3.67% | -9.09% |
| ROIC proxy | 4.67% | -83.96% |
| Return on equity | 4.67% | -83.96% |
| Dividend yield | N/A | 0.00% |
| Beta | 1.80 | 0.93 |
| Debt/equity | 18.37 | 183.30 |
| Current ratio | 1.94 | 1.01 |
| Quick ratio | 1.35 | 0.63 |
Drawdown & downside risk
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
1Y risk snapshot
TSLA max drawdown39.10%
NIO max drawdown43.73%
TSLA max wkly drop20.24%
NIO max wkly drop14.75%
5Y risk snapshot
TSLA max drawdown73.63%
NIO max drawdown93.15%
TSLA max wkly drop27.20%
NIO max wkly drop29.90%
10Y risk snapshot
TSLA max drawdown73.63%
NIO max drawdown95.00%
TSLA max wkly drop43.05%
NIO max wkly drop42.65%
Performance metrics by period
| Period | Metric | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | +4.15% | +0.21% |
| CAGR | +4.15% | +0.21% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.22 | 0.23 | |
| Max drawdown | 39.10% | 43.73% | |
| Max daily drop | 14.52% | 10.05% | |
| Max wkly drop | 20.24% | 14.75% | |
| 5Y | Growth | +35.21% | -89.36% |
| CAGR | +6.22% | -36.15% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.32 | -0.34 | |
| Max drawdown | 73.63% | 93.15% | |
| Max daily drop | 15.43% | 17.07% | |
| Max wkly drop | 27.20% | 29.90% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +2000.25% | -26.06% |
| CAGR | +35.61% | -3.76% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.73 | 0.31 | |
| Max drawdown | 73.63% | 95.00% | |
| Max daily drop | 21.06% | 21.16% | |
| Max wkly drop | 43.05% | 42.65% |
Business comparison
| Category | TSLA | NIO |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Tesla, Inc. | NIO Inc. |
| Sector | Consumer Cyclical | Electric Vehicles |
| Industry | N/A | N/A |
| Core business | Tesla is the world's leading EV brand with a global manufacturing footprint and 1.8M+ annual deliveries. Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory serves Asia-Pacific markets. Tesla's global Supercharger network, FSD software, and energy division create an integrated EV ecosystem. Tesla competes directly with NIO in China's premium EV segment — the Model 3 and Model Y are top-selling EVs globally including in China. Tesla has announced Cybercab Robotaxi for autonomous ride-hailing. | NIO is a premium Chinese electric vehicle company competing directly with Tesla in China's premium EV segment. NIO's flagship differentiator is its Battery as a Service (BaaS) model — allowing customers to swap depleted batteries for fully charged ones in NIO's battery swap stations rather than waiting to charge. NIO operates 2,400+ swap stations globally and serves users through its NIO House lifestyle experience. NIO has launched vehicles under the Onvo and Firefly sub-brands targeting different market segments. NIO has been expanding into Europe with its premium vehicles. |
| Investor focus | Investors focus on Tesla's China delivery volumes and market share vs BYD and NIO, Robotaxi autonomous driving milestone timeline, energy storage revenue, and global EV competitive positioning. | Investors focus on NIO's vehicle delivery volumes, battery swap station expansion, ONVO volume brand delivery traction, and NIO's path to profitability given high R&D investment. |
TSLA strengths
- →Global EV market leader with manufacturing scale: Tesla's gigafactories in the US, Germany, and Shanghai provide unmatched global EV manufacturing capability
- →Supercharger network standard adoption: Supercharger has been adopted by Ford, GM, and others as the US EV charging standard — strengthening Tesla's ecosystem moat globally
- →Software and AI differentiation: Tesla's FSD neural network and OTA update capability create software-defined vehicle advantages that traditional automakers and Chinese EVs are catching up to
NIO strengths
- →Battery swap technology differentiation: NIO's 3-minute battery swap vs 30-minute fast charging provides a unique convenience advantage — eliminating range anxiety and charging wait times in a way traditional charging cannot
- →Premium community positioning: NIO's lifestyle approach (NIO Houses as social spaces, NIO app ecosystem) creates customer community and loyalty beyond vehicle purchase
- →Europe expansion: NIO's expansion into European markets provides geographic diversification beyond China's increasingly competitive domestic EV market
Risks to watch — TSLA
- →China market share declining to BYD and NIO: Tesla's China market share has been under pressure from domestic competitors BYD, NIO, Li Auto, and Xpeng offering strong domestic alternatives
- →Musk political controversies affecting brand globally: brand perception in key markets is increasingly politicized due to Musk's public statements
- →BYD surpassed Tesla in global EV sales: BYD's lower-cost electric vehicles have captured global volume leadership — Tesla must defend premium positioning
Risks to watch — NIO
- →Severe financial losses: NIO has been unprofitable with significant quarterly losses — competition in China's EV market has required aggressive pricing and marketing investment
- →China EV market price war: BYD, Tesla, Xpeng, and Li Auto have all cut prices aggressively in China — NIO must participate in price competition that compresses margins
- →Battery swap station capital intensity: building 2,400+ swap stations globally requires enormous capital — the infrastructure investment creates ongoing capital expense that non-swap competitors don't bear
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