Tesla shares down five percent ahead of Model 3 production numbers

(Reuters) - Shares of Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) fell 5 percent in premarket trading on Monday ahead of the electric car maker’s announcement of quarterly production numbers for its crucial Model 3 sedan.

Last week, Tesla shares fell 12 percent to their lowest in more than a year after safety regulators said they were investigating a fatal crash involving a Tesla Model X in auto pilot mode.

Tesla has committed to build 2,500 Model 3s per week by the end of the quarter as a reassurance to the market that it can meet its own targets.

Three Wall Street analysts were upbeat about Tesla beating the production estimates.

“We like the set-up headed into Q1 deliveries as we believe sentiment is overly negative, and think Tesla may be able to exceed lower expectations,” Baird analyst Ben Kallo wrote in a note.

Production bottlenecks have forced Tesla to repeatedly push back its targets for Model 3, its new sedan that starts at $35,000. Tesla’s long-term viability depends on selling billions of dollars of Model 3s.

Shares of the company were down at $255.5 in heavy trading before the bell. The stock has lost nearly 15 percent of its value this year.