Though the stock market rallied on Thursday after a better-than-expected inflation report, one formerly bullish Tesla analyst has soured on the stock during its recent plunge, blaming CEO Elon Musk for souring investor sentiment as he seemingly focuses attention on—and plows money into—Twitter.
“Love him or hate him, it was hard to deny Musk’s grit and strategic vision around Tesla . . . again and again were massively successful over the years . . . despite enormous challenges,” Ives said Thursday. “Now Musk has managed to do what the bears have unsuccessfully tried for years—crush Tesla’s stock by his own doing.”
Despite Tesla’s collapsing value, notable Tesla bull Cathie Wood is seemingly still optimistic about the stock. The high-profile stock picker’s Ark Invest purchased nearly 40,000 Tesla shares on Wednesday as shares hit a two-year low. The stock remains her flagship fund’s second-largest holding, commanding some $550 million in market value.
Key Background
The Musk-Twitter saga started when the billionaire acquired a 9% stake in the firm back in April and within weeks announced a bid to acquire it at a massive premium—only to try to “terminate” the deal this summer. After a series of lawsuits in which Musk voiced concerns about fake accounts, the acquisition ultimately went through last month, with Musk taking over as chief executive and immediately disbanding the company’s board and firing its CEO and chief financial officer. Last week, the Tesla chief shed some light on his struggles, saying Twitter was a “poorly managed business” he bought “on the basis of what it could become” and blaming activist groups for fueling advertiser concerns about the proliferation of hate speech on the platform.
This article was first published on forbes.com
Further Reading
Elon Musk Has Sold $3.9 Billion Of Tesla Stock Since Friday (Forbes)
Twitter’s Security And Privacy Leaders Quit Amidst Musk’s Chaotic Takeover (Forbes)