TSLA vs GM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
TSLA and GM represent opposite ends of the automotive investment spectrum — Tesla is the high-growth AI/EV premium tech company commanding 80-100x earnings; GM is the low-multiple legacy automaker generating enormous profits from trucks and SUVs while investing in EV transition. Tesla's Robotaxi and FSD potential justify its premium if autonomous driving is achieved; GM's truck profits and low valuation provide value investor appeal if EV losses are manageable.
TSLA vs GM — Tesla (the EV and AI/autonomy pure-play at premium valuation with Supercharger network, FSD, Robotaxi, and Optimus ambitions) versus General Motors (the legacy truck-dominated automaker at 5-8x P/E generating high-margin ICE profits while investing in Ultium EV platform and restructuring Cruise after autonomous setbacks).
GM holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. GM leads on both 1-year return (+38.71%) and forward P/E quality (5.81x vs 161.56x for TSLA), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. On fundamentals, TSLA is growing revenue faster (25.50%), while GM maintains the higher operating margin (3.20%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for GM (+17.30%) than for TSLA (+11.85%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- believe Tesla's FSD and Robotaxi represent the most valuable AI/autonomous vehicle opportunity — if self-driving taxi fleets generate fleet operator margins, Tesla could be worth far more than its current vehicle valuation
- see Tesla's energy division (Megapack grid storage) as an underappreciated growth business separate from EVs — utility-scale battery storage is a multi-hundred-billion-dollar market
- trust Elon Musk's execution track record to deliver Cybercab, FSD v13, and Optimus on timelines that could trigger major re-ratings
- are comfortable with extreme valuation requiring perfect execution, Musk political risk, BYD competition in global markets, and severe drawdowns on execution misses
- want low-valuation automotive exposure — GM's 5-8x P/E provides a margin of safety if EV transition uncertainties take longer to resolve than bulls expect
- value GM's truck and SUV profit engine — Silverado and Suburban margins are exceptional, providing cash flow to fund EV transition while returning capital to shareholders
- see GM's Ultium platform as an underappreciated EV cost-reduction pathway — Ultium vehicle lineup expanding could improve EV economics faster than the market expects
- are comfortable with EV division losses, Cruise restructuring costs, China market deterioration, and the multi-year transition uncertainty of the largest ICE profit business in the US
| Metric | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 70.5 | 54.5 |
| AI ranki | #41 | #296 |
| Latest closei | $364.27 | $82.20 |
| 1M returni | +3.75% | -3.25% |
| 6M returni | -4.22% | +11.40% |
| 1Y returni | -12.61% | +38.71% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $8.74K (-12.6%) started 2025-09-18 | $13.87K (+38.7%) started 2025-09-18 |
| 5Y ago | $14.97K (+49.7%) started 2021-09-20 | $17.61K (+76.1%) started 2021-09-20 |
| 10Y ago | $264.81K (+2548.1%) started 2016-09-19 | $37.16K (+271.6%) started 2016-09-19 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $1.38T | $78.03B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 322.92 | 38.51 |
| Forward P/Ei | 161.56 | 5.81 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 13.03 | 0.98 |
| Analyst targeti | $390.09 | $101.19 |
| Target upsidei | +11.85% | +17.30% |
| Metric | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 25.50% | 1.90% |
| Earnings growthi | -3.00% | -26.20% |
| EPS growthi | -3.00% | -26.20% |
| FCF margini | +4.67% | +11.82% |
| Operating margini | 1.41% | 3.20% |
| Profit margini | 3.67% | 1.05% |
| ROIC proxyi | 4.67% | 3.16% |
| Return on equityi | 4.67% | 3.16% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | 0.84% |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 29.46% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | No increase yet |
| Betai | 1.83 | 1.33 |
| Debt/equityi | 18.37 | 202.34 |
| Current ratioi | 1.94 | 1.14 |
| Quick ratioi | 1.35 | 0.89 |
Over the past year, TSLA and GM have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.22), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -12.61% | +38.71% |
| CAGRi | -12.62% | +38.74% | |
| Volatilityi | 46.32% | 34.87% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.16 | 0.98 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.21 | 1.68 | |
| Max drawdowni | 39.10% | 16.20% | |
| Current drawdowni | 25.64% | 8.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 15.96% | 5.85% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 18.63% | 7.47% | |
| Max daily dropi | 14.52% | 5.21% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 20.24% | 8.05% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +49.67% | +71.23% |
| CAGRi | +8.41% | +11.37% | |
| Volatilityi | 59.86% | 36.52% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.36 | 0.35 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.52 | 0.52 | |
| Max drawdowni | 73.63% | 58.96% | |
| Current drawdowni | 25.64% | 8.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 33.94% | 27.38% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 38.05% | 32.11% | |
| Max daily dropi | 15.43% | 8.99% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 27.20% | 15.34% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +2548.08% | +208.00% |
| CAGRi | +38.78% | +11.91% | |
| Volatilityi | 59.55% | 37.09% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.77 | 0.37 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.16 | 0.54 | |
| Max drawdowni | 73.63% | 59.96% | |
| Current drawdowni | 25.64% | 8.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 25.40% | 21.01% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 30.71% | 26.18% | |
| Max daily dropi | 21.06% | 17.32% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 43.05% | 35.38% |
| Category | TSLA | GM |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Tesla, Inc. | General Motors Company |
| Sector | Consumer Cyclical | Consumer Cyclical |
| Industry | Auto Manufacturers | Auto Manufacturers |
| Core business | Tesla is the world's leading electric vehicle company producing the Model 3, Model Y, Model S, Model X, and Cybertruck. Tesla's vertically integrated manufacturing (Gigafactories in Texas, Nevada, Germany, Shanghai) and proprietary charging network (Supercharger) create competitive advantages. Tesla's Energy division generates revenue from Powerwall home batteries and Megapack grid storage. Full Self-Driving (FSD) and the planned Robotaxi/Cybercab represent Tesla's AI and autonomous vehicle ambitions under Elon Musk. | General Motors is one of the world's largest automakers producing Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac, and Buick vehicles primarily in North America. GM earns the majority of its profit from ICE (internal combustion engine) trucks and SUVs — particularly Silverado pickups and Suburban/Tahoe SUVs. GM has scaled back its Cruise autonomous vehicle division after a safety incident and significant losses. The Ultium EV platform underlies GM's electric vehicle lineup (Chevy Equinox EV, Cadillac Lyriq, GMC Hummer). GM generates significant FCF, pays a dividend, and executes share buybacks. |
| Investor focus | Investors focus on Tesla's EV delivery volumes, gross margin trajectory, FSD progress toward autonomy, Robotaxi commercial launch timeline, Optimus humanoid robot development, and energy storage business. | Investors focus on GM's truck/SUV profitability (EBIT margins 10%+), EV transition progress (Ultium losses), Cruise restructuring, dividend and buyback capacity, and China operations (significant earnings source). |
- EV pure-play with 20%+ gross margins: Tesla's manufacturing efficiency and software-enabled margins are far above GM's EV operations — Tesla earns money on EVs while legacy OEMs often lose money
- Supercharger network as ecosystem moat: Tesla's North American charging network is being opened to non-Tesla EVs — creating charging revenue while establishing network standard dominance
- FSD and autonomous vehicle leadership: Tesla has accumulated billions of miles of FSD driving data — machine learning at scale creates autonomous capability advantage difficult for rivals to match
- Truck and SUV profitability engine: GM's Silverado, Suburban, Tahoe, and Escalade generate exceptional margins — ICE truck profits fund EV transition and shareholder returns
- Low P/E valuation: GM trades at 5-8x earnings — one of the cheapest large-cap US stocks reflecting EV transition uncertainty and legacy auto sector skepticism
- EV progress with Ultium platform: GM's Ultium modular EV platform underlies multiple EV models — providing scale for battery and platform cost reduction as volumes grow
- Elon Musk political controversies affecting brand: Tesla's brand has been affected by Musk's political positions and social media controversies — potential boycotts in politically sensitive markets
- Extreme valuation premium requires perfection: Tesla trades at 80-100x earnings — any execution miss (delays, margin pressure, volume misses) can cause significant stock corrections
- EV competition from BYD and Chinese EVs globally: BYD surpassed Tesla in global EV sales — Chinese EV makers with lower labor costs are increasingly competitive in global and US markets
- EV transition losing money: GM's EV division loses billions annually — Ultium battery costs are still higher than needed for EV profitability
- Cruise autonomous vehicle losses and safety setbacks: GM invested billions in Cruise and is scaling back after an accident and subsequent regulatory and public trust challenges — Cruise represents sunk costs without near-term returns
- China market revenue declining: GM earns significant profit from China through joint ventures — the China market is deteriorating as domestic Chinese EV makers (BYD, NIO) gain share at the expense of foreign brands
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