Stocks to watch: Tesla to remain in focus Monday

By Sue Chang, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Tesla Motors Inc. is likely to remain in focus on Monday after surging 41% this week, its best weekly performance since it went public in 2010.

The electric-car maker reported its first quarterly profit ever on Wednesday, helping the stock soar to record levels.

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Amid all the euphoria over Tesla’s TSLA +10.61%  stellar results, some analysts cautioned that there are still speed bumps ahead.

“To date, Tesla’s strong performance has been a function of its impressive factory ramp and marketing plan, but also two years of pent-up demand and the sale of lucrative ZEV [zero-emission-vehicle] credits,” Ben Schuman, an analyst at Pacific Crest, wrote in a note on Thursday.

“Going forward, the company needs to ramp to 25% gross margins from 5% (excluding ZEV credits) and demonstrate sustainable demand. This can be done, but we do not think the current valuation adequately reflects execution risk.”

Separately, Post Holdings Inc. POST +3.24% , the maker of Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles and Grape Nuts, is expected to report on Monday second-quarter earnings of 27 cents a share, according to a consensus survey by FactSet. The cereal maker was spun off from Ralcorp Holdings Inc. last year.

On Monday after the market close, Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. TTWO +2.81%  is likely to post fourth-quarter earnings of 23 cents a share.