Published , by Asif Khan
Published , by Asif Khan
Back before Elon Musk acquired Twitter last year, the billionaire entrepreneur was still able to do a lot of damage with just 140 characters or less. The CEO of Tesla found himself in a lot of trouble back in 2018 when he tweeted "Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured." While this tweet did cost him his spot as Chairman of the Board, some shareholders wanted Musk to be held accountable. The jury in the most recent Tesla shareholder lawsuit has determined that Musk is not liable for losses incurred around the posting of the infamous tweet.
During the trial, Musk testified that he would have sold some of his SpaceX stock in order to keep up his end of the deal. While no one can really confirm or deny these hypothetical statements, many Tesla shareholders and onlookers have just become used to Musk's lies. For example, Musk famously tweeted "Forgot to say one thing at Tesla annual shareholders meeting: just as my money was the first in, it will be the last out." That statement has proven to be a steaming pile of animal feces, as the Tesla CEO has had to dump billions of dollars worth of stock to fund his acquisition of Twitter.
Musk's investment in Twitter seems to be going pretty smoothly, with the social media platform blocking free API access in favor of another half-baked attempt at monetization. Tesla investors have been put in a tough position by Musk's acquisition of Twitter, leading some shareholders to ask about the negative impact on the brand. Musk, in another super in-touch response, said that "I'm reasonably popular."
Only time will tell how much longer Elon Musk's Twitter will exist for, but his reckless "funding confirmed tweet" will always exist as the canary in the coal mine that was an early warning on just how much damage an unhinged billionaire is capable of doing with their own personal bully pulpit.
This article is only meant for educational purposes, and should not be taken as investment advice. Please consider your own investment time horizon, risk tolerance, and consult with a financial advisor before acting on this information.
Full Disclosure:
At the time of this article, Shacknews primary shareholder Asif A. Khan, his family members, or his company Virtue LLC had the following positions:
Long Tesla via TSLA shares (partially-hedged with out-of-the-money put options)
Long Tesla via TSLA call options