 "'Tesla is on my mind 24/7' amid concerns about Twitter distraction: Musk")
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Thursday that "Tesla is on my mind 24/7," trying to soothe investor worries about him being distracted by a Twitter deal that has depressed stocks at the electric car company.
Posting a picture showing a woman (Tesla) who is upset by her boyfriend (Elon) checking out another woman (Twitter), he said, "So may seem like below, but not true."
"To be clear, I'm spending <5% (but actually) of my time on the Twitter acquisition. It ain't rocket science!" he tweeted.
"Yesterday was Giga Texas, today is Starbase. Tesla is on my mind 24/7."
Tesla this year opened its new car factory in Texas, and Musk's rocket company SpaceX has a launch site known as Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas.
Tesla shares have lost one third of their value since the billionaire disclosed his stake in Twitter in early April and sold $8.5 billion worth of Tesla stocks in a move seen to help finance his $44-billion Twitter deal.
Further hurting stocks are China lockdown measures that dampened Tesla's production and an exclusion of Tesla from a widely-followed S&P sustainability index.
Tesla bull Daniel Ives, an analyst at Wedbush, on Thursday cut the target share price of Tesla due to the China production disruption and warned of "distraction risks" from Musk's Twitter deal.
Leo KoGuan, a major individual investor in Tesla, on Thursday called on the electric carmaker to buy back shares.
"Tesla must announce immediately and buy back $5 billion of Tesla shares from its free cash flow this year and $10 billion from its free cash flow next year, without effecting its existing $18 billion cash reserves with ZERO debt," KoGuan said in a Twitter message to Tesla's head of investor relations, Martin Viecha.
Viecha was not immediately available for comment.
Last year, KoGuan, the third largest individual shareholder of Tesla, said he was investing billions in Tesla because he believes in Musk's "great mission that I share." He said in March that he was buying more Tesla shares, not selling during the stocks' dip.
(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin
Editing by Nick Zieminski and Chris Reese)
One subscription. Two world-class reads.
Already subscribed? Log in
Subscribe to read the full story →*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times
Smart Quarterly
₹900
3 Months
₹300/Month
SAVE 25%
Smart Essential
₹2,700
1 Year
₹225/Month
SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months
Super Saver
₹3,900
2 Years
₹162/Month
Subscribe
Renews automatically, cancel anytime
Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans
Exclusive premium stories online
Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors
Complimentary Access to The New York Times
News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic
Business Standard Epaper
Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share
Curated Newsletters
Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox
Market Analysis & Investment Insights
In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor
Archives
Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997
Ad-free Reading
Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements
Seamless Access Across All Devices
Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app
SAVE 25%