Tesla will sell its Bitcoin stake for $460 million in the second quarter.

 According to analysts, Tesla will sell its Bitcoin stake for $460 million in the second quarter.

Cryptocurrency prices fell sharply during the quarter.

 Tesla will sell its Bitcoin stake for $460 million in the second quarter.

According to a note from Barclays analyst Brian Johnson, electric car maker Tesla, led by cryptocurrency backer Elon Musk, could get a $460 million discount on its massive Bitcoin holdings in the second quarter. The company is due to release its report after the stock market closes on Wednesday.

According to Johnson's calculations, Tesla didn't sell or add Bitcoin (BTC) in the last quarter, something it hasn't done since the first quarter of last year.

Tesla bought $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin in January 2021 when the cryptocurrency was trading between $32,000-$33,000. Tesla sold about 10% of its stake in the first quarter, but has not sold any bitcoins since.

As Bitcoin closes the second quarter at $18,731, Tesla enthusiast Johnson expects to charge non-cash impairment charges of about $460 million or about 40 cents per share from his total assets.

Accounting rules for digital assets require a company to charge an impairment fee if the asset's value declines during the quarter. However, if the value of the property increases, it is not reported as a profit until the property is sold.

Overall, Johnson maintained an underweight position on Tesla, but raised its price target from $370 to $380 based on earnings forecasts.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet expect Tesla to report adjusted second-quarter earnings of $1.81 per share on revenue of $16.5 billion.

Shares of Tesla rose 0.6% to $741.03 on Wednesday. The stock is down nearly 30% so far.

Tesla's Bitcoin holdings were flat in Q1.
The electric car maker has never bought or sold bitcoins on its balance sheet in the last four quarters.

Tesla's (TSLA) Bitcoin asset value hit $1.26 billion for the second straight quarter, the electric car maker said in its quarterly earnings report on Wednesday.

Tesla did not buy or sell Bitcoin (BTC) or experience asset depletion during the first and fourth quarters of last year.

In the third quarter of last year, Tesla did not increase or decrease its bitcoin holdings, but had to report a loss of $51 million to reflect the cryptocurrency's decline in value.

Digital asset accounting rules require a company to report a decline if an asset's value declines during a quarter. However, if the price rises, the asset does not appear as a profit on the balance sheet until it is sold.

Tesla announced in February that it had purchased $1.5 billion in bitcoin. The company then reduced its Bitcoin position by 10% in the first quarter, increasing its quarterly revenue to $272 million. Tesla did not buy or sell bitcoin in the second quarter.

According to FactSet, Tesla posted earnings-per-share of $3.22 in the first quarter, well above analysts' expectations of $2.26. Revenue was $18.8 billion compared to $17.85 billion.

Tesla shares rose 3.6% to $1,012.01 on Wednesday. So far, the stock is down about 3%.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently made headlines with a $43 billion unsolicited bid on Twitter (TWTR).