Analysts at BofA Securities on Wednesday cut their rating on Tesla Inc. TSLA, +1.63% to their equivalent of sell. Tesla is a "trailblazer" in the electric vehicle market, and could be successful as EV demand increases over time, said the analysts, led by John Murphy, in a note. Tesla faces several hurdles, however, including ongoing and future production challenges; continued losses and cash burn from low production and deliveries, higher costs, and new facility construction; and the prospect of new competition and technology and model obsolescence, the analysts said. BofA also turned more bearish for the prospects of overall vehicle volumes for the year, saying it cut it a third time to a decline of 23% compared with a previous estimate of a 13% decline. Shares of Tesla have gained 167% in the past 12 months, contrasting with losses around 4% for the S&P 500 index SPX, -1.15% .