Longtime Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) investor and Gerber Kawasaki Wealth CEO Ross Gerber has sold approximately $60 million worth of Tesla shares. Gerber cited a lack of interest in the company’s cars and robots as the primary reason for his decision.
What Happened: Gerber, a vocal critic of Elon Musk, revealed that his investment fund still holds a $50 million stake in the company. He expressed doubts about Tesla’s ability to meet its sales goals, dismissing bullish claims about the company’s robotics and self-driving technology. Gerber said this in an interview with Yahoo Finance on Friday.
Gerber stated, “Over time, I’ve just been sort of lowering my position, because I just don’t have the same confidence that they’re going to achieve the goals that were set out for Tesla several years ago and even recently, which is really to sell more cars.”
Other investors have also grown skeptical about Tesla, with the stock down over 15% this year due to declining sales, increased competition in China, and Musk’s legal issues. Gerber noted the used-car market is flooded with old Teslas, making it difficult to sell his own vehicle at a fair price.
Gerber criticized Musk’s focus on AI and robotics, suggesting that demand for Tesla’s humanoid robots would be low. “Nobody wants a robot from Elon Musk. Why? Who would trust it?” he said.
Why It Matters: Gerber’s concerns about Tesla are not new. In April, Gerber predicted a challenging earnings report for Tesla, questioning the company’s growth strategy. He suggested that Tesla’s earnings report might not meet expectations, raising doubts about the company’s ability to sell more cars with its current strategy.
Additionally, Gerber has been critical of Musk’s leadership, attributing Tesla’s poor first-quarter sales to Musk’s “toxic” behavior. In April, Gerber stated, “Basically Tesla can’t sell its cars due to Elon’s behavior. Let’s stop blaming the Houthi rebels or German environmental terrorists. Or a recession that never came. Or interest rates.”
Despite these criticisms, some analysts believe Tesla has a strong future in the robotaxi market. On Tuesday, Ark Invest analyst Tasha Kenney highlighted Tesla’s potential to dominate the robotaxi market, despite competition from Alphabet Inc.‘s Waymo and Baidu Inc. Kenney noted that advancements in Tesla’s technology could significantly reduce costs and enhance scalability.
Furthermore, Musk has ambitious plans for Tesla’s humanoid robots. Musk envisioned a future where humans could upload their memories to the cloud and download them into humanoid robots, adding to the list of benefits he sees for the company’s bots called Optimus.
Price Action: Tesla’s stock closed at $209.21 on Tuesday, down 1.88% for the day. In after-hours trading, the stock dipped further by 0.53%. Year to date, Tesla’s stock has declined by 15.78%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Kaustubh Bagalkote
