The chair of Tesla sold stock worth $230 million while profits at Elon
Musk's carmaker plunged
[May 15, 2025] By
BERNARD CONDON
NEW YORK (AP) — The chair of Tesla sold more than $230 million of
company stock since Elon Musk's endorsement of Donald Trump triggered
boycotts and protests against his cars, sending its profits and stock
price plunging.
More than half of Robyn Denholm's cash haul came from sales in the first
four months this year as Tesla stock fell by one-third, according to
filings reviewed by The Associated Press. In total, she unloaded
hundreds of thousands of shares — more than half her holdings as
dictated by a pre-arranged selling plan filed with regulators as Musk
began embracing right-wing politics.
Denholm filed that plan on July 25, the day Musk endorsed Trump for
president.
Denholm's profits were likely outsized, too. That is because many of the
shares she sold had been acquired through so-called options granted to
her by Tesla years earlier that, given recent stock prices, allowed her
to buy at a deep discount, according to data from research provider
FactSet. Nearly a million shares acquired through options were bought
for $25, less than a tenth of the market price for much of the last nine
months.
The AP reached out to both Tesla and Denholm but did not receive an
immediate reply.
A Denholm statement to The New York Times, which earlier reported on the
insider sales, said that the share value of holdings by Tesla directors
has jumped because the stock itself has soared, creating “outsized
returns” for all shareholders.
It's not clear why Denholm decided to cash out so much of her stake.
[to top of second column] |
A Model X sports-utility vehicle sits outside a Tesla store in
Littleton, Colo., June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
 Pre-determined selling schedules are
used by executives and directors as a way of telling investors that
their selling isn't based on insider information, which is illegal,
or necessarily a sign that they have turned pessimistic about a
company.
Denholm isn't the only Tesla insider who has been selling. The chief
financial officer and other directors have unloaded $189 million in
stock in the same nine-month period, according to FactSet data.
Tesla stock soared after Trump was elected in November on hopes that
the president-elect's close relations with Musk would translate to
less regulatory scrutiny and bigger profits.
But Musk's role as the government cost-cutting chief for Trump and
his comments supporting extreme right-wing politicians in Europe
have triggered a backlash among car buyers, and sales have sunk
along with its stock.
Tesla reported last month that profits in the first three months of
the year plunged 71%.
The stock soared again after Musk, the company's chief executive and
biggest shareholder, said he would be stepping back from his
Washington work to spend more time at the electric automaker.
Tesla closed at $347 a share Wednesday, up 4% for the day and more
than 50% since its April low.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
