BUZZ-Benchmark starts Tesla coverage with 'buy'

Benchmark starts coverage on electric vehicle maker Tesla TSLA.O with "buy" rating and $475 PT

Shares of TSLA up 1.3% to $332.90 premarket

Brokerage bets on co's growing opportunities in autonomous vehicles, robotics and energy generation and storage, as well as continued proliferation of the EV market

Additionally, brokerage sees co's generalized AI solution quickly expanding to other locations if co's unsupervised full self-driving service, which will be launched as a paid option in Austin, Texas this June, proves successful

Last month, Musk said that Tesla's driver assistance software, known as Full Self-Driving (FSD), will undergo unsupervised tests in various states, including California, later this year

TSLA shares surged ~63% in 2024