Tesla Investors Concerned Over Musk’s Focus On Twitter

Chief Executive Elon Musk’s participation with Twitter Inc. has sparked concerns among Tesla’s individual investors. The sound may be getting louder for the electric-vehicle manufacturer, with the automobile business on pace for its worst full-year performance.

Mr. Musk testified last month at a trial that he has been devoting the majority of his time lately to Twitter, which he purchased for $44 billion. “I expect to reduce my time at Twitter and find someone else to run it over time,” he testified.

Through Tuesday’s close, Tesla shares have fallen by 54.31%, putting the company on pace for its worst year ever. The only other year Tesla’s stock dropped 10.97% was 2016. Accordingly, this year, the Nasdaq has dropped by around 28%.

On Tuesday, Tesla shares fell 4.09%, marking the worst day in two years. Bloomberg publishes a ranking of the world’s richest people. According to their data,  Musk relinquished the unofficial title to European mogul Bernard Arnault.

Investors are asking who is making decisions at the EV maker

Tesla supporters have been concerned about Musk’s acquisition of Twitter for months. While the stock was already down around 30%, several urged Tesla CEO Elon Musk to abandon the purchase and concentrate on the car maker. In the following months, the stock dropped further as recession worries and cost pressures from high inflation weighed on the company. Tesla’s vehicle delivery targets have also been reduced. Since the Twitter agreement closed in late October, Tesla’s stock has dropped by about 28%. It finished at its lowest price in over two years on Tuesday.

“Tesla will be excellent long-term, but it doesn’t determine macroeconomic tides,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted on Tuesday. “I’ll ensure Tesla investors profit from Twitter.” However, he did not get into details.

A request for comment from Tesla was not returned. Mr. Musk said he is still working on Tesla as well as SpaceX, formally known as Space Exploration Technologies Corp. He added, “I continue to oversee both Tesla & SpaceX, but the teams there are so great that often little intervention is required.”