(Reuters) -Tesla missed market expectations for first-quarter deliveries on Tuesday, as it battled competition from upstarts and established players in major markets, while struggling with weak demand for its aging line-up of electric cars.

Tesla shares fell 6.9% before the bell, adding to the nearly 30% slide in value so far this year.

The world's most valuable automaker handed over about 386,810 vehicles in the three months to March 31, down 20.2% from the prior quarter.

Wall Street on average had expected Tesla to deliver 454,200 vehicles, according to 18 analysts polled by Visible Alpha.

The electric automaker's deliveries fell 8.5% from a year ago. The last time it posted a sales fall was in the second quarter of 2020 when COVID-19 pandemic forced the automaker to shut down production.

The first quarterly drop in deliveries in four years is also a sign that the effects of its price cuts are waning. Tesla produced 433,371 vehicles during the January-March period.

It delivered 369,783 Model 3 and Model Y, and about 17,000 units of other models, including Model S sedan, Cybertruck and Model X premium SUV.

In January, Tesla also warned of "notably lower" sales growth this year as it focuses on the production of its next-generation electric vehicle.

(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)