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CNN business
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Here’s more bad news for Tesla CEO Elon Musk — as if he needs some.
Investors who’ve gone short in Tesla shares have reaped $11.5 billion in gains so far this year, according to Wall Street analyst firm S3 Partners, as Tesla stock shed about half its value to have. That’s a nearly 60% return on the $19.6 billion invested in short Tesla positions this year.
And it’s a nearly 180-degree reversal from what they did in 2021, when their short positions resulted in a total loss of $10.3 billion after Tesla shares surged 50% . And let’s not forget them $40.7 billion loss Short sellers suffered in 2020 as Tesla stock soared 743%.
The troubles for Tesla stock and the gains for short sellers actually started about a year ago.
“Tesla shorts are up $16.3 billion since their recent high of $409.97 per share on November 4, 2021,” said Ihor Dusaniwsky, managing director at S3. That’s a 79% return on average short interest of $20.6 billion, he said.
Tesla
(TSLA) How much Tesla has always had its fair share of doubters who question the willingness of car buyers to switch from gas-powered to electric vehicles
(TSLA) has to worry about EV offerings from established automakers and even the validity of corporate earnings.
Up until a few years ago, Tesla’s profits didn’t come from selling cars, they came from selling cars Tax credits sold to other automakers to help them comply with emissions regulations.
These doubts have made Tesla one of the most shorted stocks on the market. This year, it ranks second behind only Apple
(AAPL), which holds approximately $17 billion in short positions. But while Apple
(AAPL) Shares are also down, with those shorting their shares making a far more modest $3.7 billion this year, according to S3.
No CEO likes investors shorting their stocks, but Musk seems particularly annoyed by them. He claims that Tesla’s detractors on Wall Street do the work of short sellers and taunts them when the stock is doing well, even selling red satin.”short shorts‘ on the Tesla website.
But the short selling is just one of many issues Musk has been grappling with this year.
He has lost nearly $100 billion of his estimated world-leading net worth and may be on the verge of losing his position as US President the richest person in the world.
After years of rising sales and repeated profit records, Tesla has been plagued by supply chain issues and Covid-related shutdowns in China, resulting in a rarity decline in his car sales and a drop in profits. The company has also admitted that this would not be the case reached the target of 50% growth on sale this year. The once high-flying stock has gone into reverse.
There are also concerns that his purchase has distracted him from Twitter. In April he ready to pay $44 billion for Twitter, only to see the company’s value plummet even before the sale closes.
to get his efforts failed from the deal, and made him admit he overpaid for the social media platform. Shortly after he took control, advertisers began fleeing the site, and Musk admitted that Twitter had a “massive loss of revenue.”
