Tesla shares fell to their lowest level in more than two years on Wednesday as investors in the electric car company, including a “fan” of CEO Elon Musk, criticized the billionaire for being distracted after his Twitter takeover.
Shares of Tesla, the world’s most valuable carmaker, have been among the worst performers this year among major automakers and tech companies.
Investors are concerned that Musk could push down Tesla shares further to prop up the struggling social media company.
Tesla’s third-largest individual shareholder KoGuan Leo, who described himself as a Musk “fanboy,” tweeted on Wednesday that “Elon has given up on Tesla and there is no CEO working at Tesla.”
“Are we just the owners of Elon’s stupid bag? We need an executioner like Tim Cook, not a snake,” wrote Leo, referring to the head of Apple.
Tesla shares were down 1% after falling 3.2% to $155.88 per share, the lowest level since Nov. 18, 2020.
Tesla shares have fallen 55% so far this year, trailing GM, Ford, Apple and Amazon.
Investors are also increasingly concerned that his turmoil could hurt Tesla’s brand and sales as it faces increasing competition. Even Tesla bulls and loyal fans expressed displeasure at Musk’s controversial tweets.
“Elon is a great business leader. He will soon (if not already) realize that his polarizing political views are hurting customers’ perception of TSLA EVs,” Tesla bull Gary Black tweeted Wednesday.
“Customers don’t want their cars to be controversial. They want to be proud to drive – without shame.
Musk said Tuesday that he is “confident that Tesla shareholders will benefit from Twitter in the long term,” without elaborating.
Goldman Sachs on Tuesday cut Tesla’s stock price and lowered estimates for Tesla’s deliveries and gross margin for the fourth quarter, reflecting softer supply and demand.
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