Tesla posted weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter deliveries, leading to the company’s first year-over-year sales decline.Shares are weak, but investors will soon look past the delivery figure. They are focused on a new model and self-driving cars in the new year.

The delivery figures are the first real piece of fundamental news for Tesla investors since the November election sparked a big rally for the stock.

Tesla’s stock fell 5.4% in early trading on the news. Analysts polled by FactSet expected the electric-vehicle maker to report fourth-quarter deliveries of 498,000 vehicles. For the year, the FactSet consensus was for the sale of 1.793 million vehicles.

Tesla stock took a dive in morning trading on Thursday after the company announced lower figures than expected for deliveries and fourth-quarter production.

Tesla shares sank Thursday morning after the electric vehicle maker reported fewer deliveries than analysts had expected for the fourth quarter.

Shares in Tesla fell more than 3% premarket, after Elon Musk's automaker reported its first annual decline in vehicle deliveries in more than a decade. Get the full story:

Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets,

Wall Street is expecting fourth-quarter shipments of about 507,000 vehicles, but the EV maker might not have to hit that total to keep the stock from falling.