(Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk told investors not to buy Tesla Inc. shares if they can’t stomach volatility.

They got the message. His comments -- part of a bizarre, heated conference call Wednesday night -- precipitated another plunge in the stock of his electric-car maker. Tesla fell as much as 8 percent in early trading Thursday, after the chief executive officer was dismissive of analysts’ questions following another quarter in which the company burned more than $1 billion in cash.

Musk, 46, may have backed Tesla into a corner. While he repeated that the carmaker won’t need a capital raise this year -- and said he specifically doesn’t want one -- even Tesla bulls harbor doubts about its cash position. The company had about $2.7 billion on hand at the end of March and has blazed through about $3.9 billion during the preceding year.

“He reiterated that he’s not going to raise cash. Now, no one believes that,” Ben Kallo, an analyst at Robert W. Baird & Co. with a buy rating on Tesla shares, said on Bloomberg Television. “His approach obviously didn’t go over well.”

Read More on Tesla:
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  • Morgan Stanley analyst calls call ‘most unusual’ in his 20 years
  • Musk plays ‘dangerous game’ by roasting analysts: Chris Bryant
  • Tesla CEO undercut investor confidence: Liam Denning

--With assistance from Alix Steel , David Westin , Courtney Dentch and Esha Dey .

To contact the reporter on this story: Craig Trudell in Southfield, Michigan, at ctrudell1@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Craig Trudell at ctrudell1@bloomberg.net, David Papadopoulos at papadopoulos@bloomberg.net, Jamie Butters

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