Tesla stock is in free fall, cratering 40 per cent from December’s peak, and rapidly retreating to pre-election levels.
As with everything, multiple factors are involved. The stock nearly doubled in November-December, so an unwind of speculative excess was inevitable.
Technicals aside, Tesla’s fundamentals look increasingly shaky. Barclays notes Tesla has quietly dropped its previous forecast of 20-30 per cent growth in 2025.
There’s certainly no growth in Europe, where sales have suffered a well-publicised collapse. One can see why, given Musk’s political extremism.
Today, many people would not be seen dead in a Tesla. Money manager Ross Gerber, a long-time Tesla shareholder, recently shared a picture of a vandalised Tesla and said he would have to sell his own Cybertruck. “The hate is real,” said Gerber. “Tesla’s brand is broken.”
And in London, an ad warning against buying a Tesla “Swasticar” has gone viral. Its tagline: “Goes from 0 to 1939 in 3 seconds.”
You can’t do the things Musk has been doing and not expect a serious backlash. Tesla is facing rising competition in the EV space, but that’s not its biggest problem. It’s Musk.
