Musk exercises Tesla options, sells $1.1 bn in shares after Twitter poll

The move gives billionaire cash to pay for the tax bill associated with the exercising of the options.

Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk sold about $1.1 billion worth of shares to cover tax obligations on options exercise, the billionaire reported in filings on Wednesday.

Musk exercised options to acquire nearly 2.2 million shares of Tesla and then sold about 934,000 shares--about 0.5% of his Tesla holdings. The move gives Musk cash to pay for the tax bill associated with the exercising of the options, given that his wealth, pegged by Forbes at $281.6 billion, is tied to his stake in Tesla. It also spares him the capital gains tax bill that he would have had to pay had he