A prominent Tesla Inc. analyst on Wall Street significantly lowered his price target for the company's stock by 43%, attributing it to a branding crisis sparked by CEO Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump's trade policies. Daniel Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities well known for his bullish stance on Tesla over the past four years, emphasized that Tesla has now become a global political symbol. Ives urged Musk to be more attentive to the current climate and take on a leadership role during these uncertain times.

Ives revised his target price for Tesla shares to $315 from $550, making it the second-highest reduction among the 72 analysts monitored by Bloomberg. His primary worry is the risk of Tesla getting entangled in the repercussions of the US president's trade tariffs in China, where Tesla garnered more than 20% of its revenue last year. With China imposing a 34% tariff on all US imports starting April 10, matching Trump's reciprocal tariffs on Chinese goods, Ives predicts a shift in consumer preference towards domestic brands like BYD, Nio, and Xpeng over Tesla.

The analyst pointed out that Tesla's self-inflicted branding issues have already cost the company at least 10% of its potential customer base globally, and this estimate might be on the conservative side. Following Trump's announcement of tariffs on imports into the US and subsequent stock market reactions, Tesla shares saw a sharp 15% decline in two days. Since reaching a record high on December 17, the stock has plummeted by 50%.