August 2, 2018—Electric car maker Tesla Inc. burned through $739.5 million in cash last quarter, paving the way to a company record $717.5 million net loss as it cranked out more electric cars, the Associated Press reports.
CEO Elon Musk pledged to post net profits in future quarters, and on a conference call, he apologized to two analysts he cut off on the company’s first-quarter call. Tesla’s shares jumped 9.3 percent to $328.85 in after-hours trading.
The net loss more than doubled from the same quarter a year ago, and was slightly larger than the first quarter. But Tesla’s cash burn in the second quarter slowed from about $1.1 billion.
In a statement released after the markets closed Wednesday, Tesla said it expects to produce 50,000 to 55,000 Model 3s in the third quarter, an increase of at least 75 percent from the first quarter.
Tesla spent millions as it reached a goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 sedans per week by the end of June. It now says production is rising, with the goal of 6,000 per week by the end of August. The company said it expects to reach 10,000 Model 3s per week “sometime next year.
