Tesla Energy and Tesla Solar Roof have been useful means to propel the Tesla narrative and keep Wall Street engaged, adding some additional meat for analysts to chew on.
But both these businesses are nowheresville relative to the cars.
On a purely objective basis, Tesla isn't today worth $285 a share. If we're generous, it's worth $150. If we look at the balance sheet and the value of its assets, it could arguably be worth zero, or less than zero.
If you wanted to buy Tesla, you'd have to spend more than Ford is worth to acquire billions in debt and an EV order book that hundreds of thousands of vehicles from being fulfilled.
What about the factory in Fremont, CA, Tesla's main asset? Nobody wants a car factory in Northern California.
What about the Gigafactory in Nevada? Maybe. But it's part of a long-term deal with the state. So you'd have to take that on.
History lesson: when Chrysler was bailed out and went bankrupt in 2008, nobody wanted any part of the carmaker. The US government has to arrange a shotgun marriage with Fiat and pony up billions in financing.
What about the Tesla brand? Hmmm. It's possible that a Chinese company might see Tesla as an ideal foothold in the US market. This has been much-discussed. But when you get right down to it, Tesla is a debt-laden car company with a couple of iffy sidelines. And those kinds of car companies, if they aren't too big to fail (because they employ hundreds of thousands of people), tend to vanish without a trace.