Tesla shares jump after Elon Musk says the company will be profitable and cash-flow positive in third quarter

  • Elon Musk's early morning tweet boosts Tesla stock.
  • "The Economist used to be boring, but smart with a wicked dry wit. Now it's just boring (sigh). Tesla will be profitable & cash flow+ in Q3 & Q4, so obv no need to raise money," Musk says in response to a tweet from The Economist.

Elon Musk gave detailed financial guidance for Tesla — in a tweet at 1:11 a.m. PT Friday — boosting the electric car maker's stock.

The tweet was a reply to The Economist.

"The Economist used to be boring, but smart with a wicked dry wit. Now it's just boring (sigh). Tesla will be profitable & cash flow+ in Q3 & Q4, so obv no need to raise money," Musk said in response to a tweet from The Economist.

Musk's comments appear to offer additional detail on the timing of the company's profitability later this year versus the previous guidance given by the electric car maker.

Tesla shares rose 2.4 percent Friday as traders discovered the Musk comment. However, it was unclear if Musk was saying anything new, given the company's previous statements.

Tesla said on Feb. 7: "As we ramp production of both Model 3 and our energy products while keeping tight control of operating expenses, our quarterly operating income should turn sustainably positive at some point in 2018."

And the company said last week it did not require an additional capital raise this year apart from credit lines.

"Tesla continues to target a production rate of approximately 5,000 units per week in about three months, laying the groundwork for Q3 to have the long-sought ideal combination of high volume, good gross margin and strong positive operating cash flow," the company stated in an April 3 statement. "As a result, Tesla does not require an equity or debt raise this year, apart from standard credit lines."

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.