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Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Stocks remain a general investment. And I can understand why – at the moment it’s almost 50% off its high.
However, for those who want to invest in electric vehicles (EVs) or self-driving cars, I think it’s worth considering a different inventory. It is held by legendary investor Warren Buffett, and today it trades at a much more attractive valuation than Tesla.
BYD sales are rising sharply
The stock I’m talking about is byd (OTC: BYDD.Y). It is a Chinese EV manufacturer with stock market lists in both China and the US.
You may have seen BYD’s EVs in recent years. They are pretty smooth and very popular with consumers. This popularity is explained by the company’s recent sales. In 2024, the company sold 1.76 million EVs, an increase of approximately 10% from the previous year. Overall, in 2024, it sold a record 4.3m vehicle, up 41% from the previous year.
Regarding Tesla, it sold 1.79 million cars (all EVs) in 2024, down about 3%.
Here in the UK (where it launched its EV in March 2023), BYD sold 9,271 cars in the first quarter of 2025. That figure exceeds the company’s overall UK sales volume in 2024. So the car is clearly popular with the British. Turning to Tesla, UK sales have been weaker this year. It fell by 7% per year in January.
When you zoom in on revenue, BYD is rising sharply. In 2024, its top line rose 29% to CNY 77.7 billion ($107 billion). This marked the top of the $97.7 billion reported by Tesla. Please note that Tesla’s 2024 revenues increased by 1% year-on-year.
There are many things to be excited about
There are many reasons why people will be bullish in the future. Recently, BYD launched a low-cost model (Qin L) and took on the Tesla Model 3. Meanwhile, earlier this year, the company launched a new battery charging technology that can charge EVs in just five minutes. They also announced that advanced driver assistance technology (“The Eye of God”) will be available for free on all models.
Low rating
Perhaps the best thing about BYD stocks is their valuation. It currently trades at a price of 25 (P/E) ratio, down to 21 using estimates of revenue for next year. This is a much lower rating than Tesla has. This is currently trading 98 times with forecast revenue this year and 73 times next year.
So relative to this, there seems to be a lot of value here.
Risks to consider
Of course, there are many risks to consider in BYD. One is competition with other manufacturers. Today, almost all major automakers are producing highly competitive EVs.
The other is customs duties. EU tariffs on passenger cars and US tariffs on buses and trucks can undermine profits. A major global recession is another risk. As the economic situation weakens, consumers tend to refrain from purchasing new vehicles.
But with all in mind, I think this stock has a lot of potential and is worth watching. For me, it’s a safer bet than Tesla.
