Elon Musk, who lost his title as the richest person in the world this week, sold a big chunk of Tesla stock for the fourth time in 2022.
Musk announced another $3.6 billion in stock sales on Wednesday, bringing his total for the year to nearly $40 billion and frustrating investors as the company’s shares slump to two-year lows.
He sold 22 million shares of the most valuable manufacturer in the world over the course of three days, from Monday to Wednesday, according to a U.S. securities filing.
The sale marks his second significant stock cash-out following his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter in October. Although it is unclear whether the sales are connected to the Twitter takeover, they upset investors who believe he is prioritizing Twitter over Tesla regarding focus and resources.
“It doesn’t put a lot of confidence in the business or speak volumes for where his attention is at,” said Tony Sycamore, an analyst at brokerage IG Markets.
“It’s not a good situation. I’ve spoken to many investors who have Tesla shares, and they’re absolutely furious at Elon.”
Tesla’s stock price has more than halved this year, pulling away both manufacturers and the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which is down roughly 30 percent. Musk’s sales over the last year are worth over $40 billion.
“It will start to be tiring for investors,” said Tareck Horchani, head of the prime brokerage dealing at Maybank Securities in Singapore.
According to Bloomberg data, Musk’s recent sales reduce his share in the company to around 13%. However, Musk, who has been Tesla’s CEO since 2008, is still the largest shareholder.
He was valued at $160.9 billion (R2.8 trillion) as of Wednesday’s close, ranking second on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index after France’s Bernard Arnault. This year, his fortune has fallen by $109.4 billion (R1.88 trillion).