United States
CEO Elon Musk has said that he wonât sell any further shares in Tesla for 18 months or more, in an attempt to pacify shareholders of the EV company who have watched the stock fall nearly half of its value since Muskâs takeover of Twitter.
âIâm not selling any stock for 18 to 24 months,â Musk said during an audio-only Twitter Spaces group conversation on Thursday. Musk then said he wouldnât sell Tesla shares for two years, but backtracked and said he would pause sales for at least one year.
Musk dumped $2.58 billion worth of Tesla stock last week and has sold nearly $23 billion worth of his car companyâs shares since April, when he started gaining ground in Twitter. Over the past two months, Musk has spearheaded a dizzying array of changes that have upset advertisers and alienated users. He laid off half of his staff, took moderators out of contract, and dissolved the Trust and Safety Advisors Council. He stopped enforcing his COVID-19 misinformation rule and filed criminal charges against Dr. Anthony Fauci, an infectious disease expert in the United States.
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Tesla investors are fed up with the 24/7 Twitter clamor. The eccentric CEO is distracted from his main source of wealth, the electric car company, they say.
Tesla's market cap surpassed $1.1 trillion on April 1st. This was the last trading day before Musk announced that he would buy his Twitter stake. Since then, the company has lost almost two-thirds of its value as rival automakers squeezed Tesla's dominant share of electric car sales.
Tesla shares fell more than one per cent on Friday, to $123.74. They were more than $360 each on April 1 and hit an all-time high of more than $414 in November of 2020.
This week, Tesla amplified the discounts itâs offering through yearâs end on its two top-selling models, an indication that demand is slowing for its EVs.
(With inputs from agencies)
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