Why Are Tesla Shares Surging Higher On Wednesday?

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares are gaining momentum Wednesday. The uptick follows fresh data showing a demand recovery in Europe, providing a reprieve from a long period of declining regional sales. The Nasdaq is up 0.68% while the S&P 500 has gained 0.61%. European Registration Growth After 13 months of declines, Tesla reported a 29.1% year-over-year increase in European registrations for February, according to data from InsideEVs. This includes the European Union, the U.K. and The European Free Trade Association countries. Total registrations for January and February combined reached 20,941 units, marking a 16.7% increase over the previous year. Competition and Market Share Despite the rebound, Tesla faces stiff competition from BYD Co Ltd (OTC:BYDDY) (OTC:BYDDF). The Chinese rival sold 15,438 vehicles in Europe during February, a 185.3% surge. Brand Perception Challenges While sales have improved, internal data suggests brand friction. A new EV Intelligence Report indicates Tesla has slipped in brand positivity and trust compared to Toyota Motor Corp (NYSE:TM) and Honda Motor Co Ltd (NYSE:HMC). Negative sentiment tied to CEO Elon Musk accounted for 14% of responses regarding Tesla's FSD technology. Looking Toward Q1 Deliveries Investors are now focusing on the upcoming first-quarter delivery figures. Last year, Tesla reported 386,810 deliveries for the first quarter. Technical Analysis Tesla is trading 0.9% below its 20-day simple moving average (SMA) and 8.4% below its 100-day SMA, keeping the intermediate trend under pressure even as price stabilizes near longer-term levels. Shares are up 36.15% over the past 12 months and are currently positioned closer to their 52-week highs than lows. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 41.35, which is neutral territory. Meanwhile, MACD is at -9.3286, below its signal line at -8.1645. Key Resistance: $416.50 Key Support: $387.50 TSLA Stock Price Activity: Tesla shares were up 3.10% at $394.89 at the time of publication on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data. Image via Shutterstock