New York, Feb 18, 2026, 07:25 ET — Premarket
- Tesla shares slipped roughly 1.6% in premarket trading, adding to what’s been a volatile stretch for the stock this February.
- The company’s first “Cybercab” robotaxi has come off the Texas production line, it said.
- Fed minutes drop later Wednesday, and traders are already on edge.
Tesla slipped 1.6% before the bell Wednesday. Investors digested the newest robotaxi update, with the company’s progress landing against a backdrop of rate jitters and shifting sentiment around growth names.
This is a big one for Tesla — the stock’s been riding on its autonomy pitch, but traders have shown little patience for headlines that lack a concrete revenue roadmap. U.S. markets are jittery this month, and even news that looks positive has had trouble gaining traction.
Tesla shares slid $6.72 to $410.63. The stock had finished the previous session at $417.35.
U.S. stock index futures climbed in early action, as traders kept an eye out for the Federal Reserve’s January meeting minutes due later on Wednesday, hoping for any sign of how much longer policymakers might stick with current rates. “With money markets pricing in another pause at next month’s meeting, investors will be looking to the minutes for clues on how long the central bank may remain on hold,” said Aaron Hill, chief market analyst at FP Markets. (Reuters)
Tesla announced that its first production Cybercab — a dedicated robotaxi engineered without a steering wheel or pedals — has come off the manufacturing line at the Austin Gigafactory. CEO Elon Musk weighed in on X, writing, “Congratulations to the Tesla team on making the first production Cybercab!” According to the report, Tesla might still face regulatory hurdles for a car lacking traditional human controls. (Business Insider)
According to Investors.com, Musk said Cybercab production is slated to start in April, though he cautioned that initial output will be sluggish as the line gears up. (Investors)
Technician Frank Cappelleri has his eye on the $415 level, marking it as crucial support, according to Barron’s. If that gives way, he sees possible drops toward $395 and $382. Shares are still sitting far below the late-December high close to $500. (Barron’s)
Competition is only getting tougher. Global EV registrations dropped 3% in January from a year earlier, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence told Reuters last week, with both China and North America driving the slump. (Reuters)
But there’s a catch to the robotaxi push. Hitting a factory target isn’t the same as actually putting cars on public roads, and fresh regulations or holdups with self-driving could keep autonomy stuck in the headlines, instead of showing up on the balance sheet.
Traders have their sights set on Tesla’s moves around that $415 mark as the Fed minutes hit. Looking ahead to next week, eyes are on any new word about Cybercab and whether April’s production kickoff goes beyond a staged rollout—investors want to see signs Tesla can actually get those vehicles running at volume.
