*By Conor White*
The positive [news](https://cheddar.com/videos/tesla-stock-surges-after-q2-earnings-report) in Tesla's second quarter earnings report outweighed the negatives for most investors, sending shares up more than 12 percent to their highest level in a month.
The electric carmaker announced that Model 3 production is up, but it posted losses of more than $700 million.
Some analysts have fundamental doubts about Tesla's future.
"It's a story stock," said Mark Spiegel, managing member at Stanphyl Capital. "What you have here are: bulls who couldn't care less about balance sheets or profit and loss statements; and you've got bears, or as I would call them, realists, who care a lot about that kind of stuff."
Spiegel counts himself in the latter group. He said in an interview Thursday on Cheddar that Tesla didn't do nearly enough to assuage fears about its future ー and that doesn't even account for all the other car companies eager for a bigger slice of the electric vehicle industry.
"There's a massive amount of competition coming for this company," Speigel said. "Between the Jaguar that's out now and the Audi, Mercedes, and Porsche coming out next year, it's going to destroy Model S and X sales, and that's where \[Tesla's\] margin isーwhatever margin they have."
And even though [outspoken](https://cheddar.com/videos/will-elon-musk-behave-on-this-weeks-earnings-call) CEO Elon Musk behaved on this conference call, there's no telling what he will do next.
After reaching its production goal of 5,000 Model 3 cars per week, Tesla reports it now wants to churn out 10,000 per week, "as fast as we can."
Spiegel dismissed those numbers ー and Tesla more generally.
"They're a perennial over-promiser and under-deliverer," he said.
"The reason they keep putting out these aggressive numbers is it supports the stock, which is an absurd valuation. If Tesla were a normal car company losing this much money, the stock would be in the low single digits."
For more on this story, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/tesla-announces-biggest-loss-ever-but-shares-rally).
Reusable rocket developer Stoke Space Technologies raised $65 million in a Series A round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a firm founded by Bill Gates. Stoke says its reusable rockets provide the satellite industry with low-cost, on-demand access to and from orbit. As companies like SpacX and Blue Origin are also making commitments to rocket reusability, Stoke says it is taking a different approach with a system designed to be 100% reusable, comprised of rockets designed to fly daily, like an airplane. Stoke co-founder and CEO Andy Lapsa joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
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Ahead of the new year, award-winning journalist and TV anchor Soledad O'Brien and financial expert Jean Chatzky are teaming up to launch a brand-new podcast called "Everyday Wealth," aimed at helping listeners unlock their financial potential. O'Brien and Chatzky joined Cheddar's "Opening Bell" to discuss which topics to expect, as well as the importance of financial literacy. "I think what I'm good at is asking uncomfortable questions," said O'Brien, detailing how the podcast might stand out from others. "And sometimes when it comes to talking about money, a lot of those questions are uncomfortable."
As companies figure out how to adapt to the ever-changing COVID world, mergers and acquisitions are on the rise. A new report from PwC reveals 2021 saw the most megadeals, transactions of at least $5 billion, in the U.S. Colin Wittmer, PwC's U.S. deals leader, tells Cheddar how companies can set themselves up for deals success.
The last year saw a massive uptick in CEO turnover, with over 1,200 chief executives leaving their posts in 2021. According to a recent report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the main reasons cited were talent management, retention, hiring, and reimagining the workplace post-covid. Andrew Challenger, Senior Vice President, Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
As supply chain issues continue to impact holiday shopping, many consumers are discovering that certain items are harder to find and are more expensive than in past years. However, secondary market platforms are one solution to that problem, offering shoppers an alternative place to find their favorite gifts. Jesse Einhorn, StockX senior economist, joined Cheddar to discuss how are platforms like StockX are a viable way for shoppers to avoid supply chain delays this holiday season.
