Tesla's Model 3 production has been the focus of the company much of the year, and its paid off with profits.

He may not be much on meeting production deadlines, but Tesla CEO Elon Musk predicted the company would be profitable in Q3 and, well, it is.

The company reported GAAP net income of $312 million on $6 billion for its automotive business. Perhaps more importantly, it produced a better than 20% margin on the new Model 3, Musk noted.

“It was a truly historic quarter for us,” he said during the company’s earnings conference call. “Our total cash increased by $731 million and we had free cash flow (operating cash flow less capex) of $881 million despite less than 10% of that amount coming from key working capital items.”

He noted that he expected the company would be profitable again in the fourth quarter and, unless something dramatic happens, he expects the company to generate a quarterly profit every quarter going forward.

(Tesla slumps in Consumer Reports reliability ratings. Click Here for the story.)

Much of the money came from the Model 3, as Musk said it would — once production numbers started to hit his oft-missed targets. Overall the company delivered about 84,000 vehicles during the third quarter.

That figure exceeds what it delivered year-to-date in 2017 and for all of 2016, he noted. Musk also noted the Model 3 is attracting a wide range of buyers, including those from premium and non-premium brands.

The company delivered 56,065 Model 3 sedans in the quarter, outselling volume sellers like the Nissan Altima and Sentra, Hyundai Elantra, Ford Fusion and Chevy Malibu. The company averaged more than 4,300 units weekly, Musk saying that number will rise in fourth quarter.

(Click Here for Tesla offering a surprise as it prepares for early earnings announcement.)

So enthused by the progress, Musk plans to accelerate the timeframe for selling Model 3 in China to the end of the first quarter of next year. Europe will “definitely” get the Model 3 in Q1. He also suggested that the company’s cash flow is so strong that it may begin repayment of some loans in early 2019.