For the first time in five years, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is no longer Elon Musk’s most valuable asset. After months of stock declines, his stake in SpaceX has officially overtaken Tesla in his portfolio.
Tesla’s stock has plummeted over 50% since December, causing the company to lose $800 billion in market value. That drop has also knocked roughly $100 billion off Musk’s net worth, though he remains the world’s richest person, with a fortune estimated at $329 billion by Forbes.
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Tesla’s struggles began in early January after weak vehicle deliveries for the fourth quarter of 2024. Things got worse when Musk took over the Department of Government Efficiency under President Donald Trump. Investors worried about his ability to manage Tesla while overseeing massive government budget cuts, which sent Tesla shares into a free fall.
Wall Street hasn’t been kind. According to the Financial Times, short sellers have made over $16 billion betting against Tesla in the last three months, and some analysts have downgraded their global delivery forecasts to the lowest levels since 2022.
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Several top Tesla executives and board members have been selling their stock:
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James Murdoch (Rupert Murdoch’s son and board member) sold $13 million in shares on March 10, coinciding with Tesla’s worst single-day decline in five years.
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Robyn Denholm (chair) has offloaded $75 million in shares over the past five weeks.
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Kimbal Musk (Elon Musk’s brother and board member) sold 75,000 shares valued at $27 million.
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Vaibhav Taneja (CFO) has sold over $5 million in shares in recent weeks.
While some argue that these sales are just smart portfolio management, others say it reflects concerns about Tesla’s future.
With Tesla tumbling, Musk’s 42% stake in SpaceX is now worth $147 billion — nearly $20 billion more than his Tesla holdings. The space company has been thriving, with 2024 revenue jumping 51% to $13.1 billion, according to industry analysts Payload Space, largely driven by the rapid growth of Starlink.
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Musk’s political involvement has also sparked protests at Tesla dealerships across the U.S., with critics calling out his close ties to Trump. Some liberal Tesla customers have walked away from the brand, while ongoing tariff concerns under Trump’s economic policies have added more uncertainty.
