Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA), Amazon (AMZN), Facebook (FB), Alphabet (GOOG): Were Analysts Right About These Companies’ Prospects?

Tech companies are the industry titans of this generation. As of the end of the third quarter of 2016, five most-valuable companies in the world in terms of market capitalization are tech giants. Hence, a lot of analysts have focused on these stocks, monitoring every little move each tech giant makes, and forecasting the long-term business implications of those actions.

With this in mind, we have looked at some of the analysts’ prognostications made back in 2014 and checked on whether their forecasts came true or were way off. Let’s take a closer look what analysts were saying on CNBC about Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) back in 2014.

Let’s start with Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), one of the top 10 luxury car brands in the World that is expected to revolutionize the automotive industry. In December 2014, two years after the launch of the Tesla Model S luxury sedan, Stifel Equity Research analyst Jamie Albertine set a $400 price target on the company’s stock and upgraded its recommendation to “buy.” Albertine cited the production of new cars and the anticipation for the mass-market Tesla Model 3 as catalysts for future growth. During that month, the company’s stock price slid below $200 before rallying to $222.41 before the year ended.

Unfortunately, Tesla’s stock wasn’t able to even get near $400. This year, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) unveiled the Model 3, which has amassed 373,000 pre-orders and is expected to go into production in the second half of 2017, and bought solar energy company SolarCity for $2 billion. However, the company is already facing heated competition both current, like Nissan Motor Co Ltd (ADR) (OTCMKTS:NSANY)’s Leaf, and upcoming, like the Chevrolet Bolt from General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), which will roll out nationwide in 2017. Albertine still has a “Buy” rating on Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), but the price target is now $325.

While Tesla was getting a glowing forecast from Stifel in 2014, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) received some criticism from Sucharita Mulpuru-Kodali, principal retail analyst at Forrester Research. During what was a tough year for the online retailing giant, Mulpuru-Kodali expressed pessimism over the company’s flux in focus between tech and retail, while pointing out problems with growth of Amazon Prime and profitability. The company ended 2014 at $310.35 per share, plunging from as high as $408.00 on January 22.