TSLA Tesla Inc

Tesla Motors Inc. said its second-quarter global sales rose 25% to 14,370, less than the 17,000 it had expected, as it worked to produce more vehicles.

Tesla said it produced 18,345 Model S and Model X vehicles in the same three months and that thousands of vehicles were in transit at the end of the three months that ended June 30.

While a 25% increase might seem strong, deliveries of its Model S sedan fell 15% to 9,745. Deliveries of the company's Model X stood at 4,625. Since last year, the company began selling the Model X sport-utility and it has had problems ramping up production.

Tesla said in a statement that it has now achieved regular levels of higher production and expects to produce 50,000 vehicles in the second half of 2016. Through the first six months it has delivered fewer than 30,000 vehicles.

The results come as the Palo Alto, Calif.-based car maker revealed last week that a driver of a Model S died while using its autopilot system in early May. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened an investigation into the crash.

In addition, Tesla is trying to execute a $2.8 billion purchase of SolarCity Corp. Some shareholders and analysts have expressed concern over the offer, pointing to possible conflicts of interest among the two companies' boards of directors.

Write to Mike Ramsey at michael.ramsey@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 03, 2016 21:05 ET (01:05 GMT)

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