Tesla CEO and X proprietor Elon Musk stands with Republican statesmanlike nominee erstwhile U.S. president Donald Trump during a run rally, connected the time Trump returns to the tract of the July assassination effort against him, successful Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 5, 2024.
Brian Snyder | Reuters
As Tesla prepares for quarterly results connected Wednesday, galore investors person 1 large contented connected their minds: Donald Trump.
On a forum Tesla uses to solicit capitalist questions online successful beforehand of its net calls, dozens of inquiries poured successful from retail shareholders astir Elon Musk's politics, his incendiary commentary connected X, and his efforts to get Trump backmost successful the White House.
"Elon Musk has the close to explicit his governmental views, but his nationalist activism seems astatine likelihood with his work arsenic CEO to support shareholder value," an anonymous retail capitalist wrote connected the forum. "How does Tesla code this, and tin it corroborate Musk's actions are not harming income oregon growth?"
The remark received 168 upvotes. Another question, which received 527 upvotes, asked if Tesla's committee is doing thing to guarantee Musk's "political engagement doesn't detract from Tesla's halfway ngo and protects shareholder worth and marque integrity."
Third-quarter results are scheduled to deed aft the adjacent of regular trading.
Musk is concurrently the CEO of Tesla, defence contractor SpaceX and proprietor of societal web X. He besides started a company, xAI, past twelvemonth to make artificial quality products extracurricular of Tesla, and he's the laminitis of encephalon machine interface institution Neuralink and tunneling task The Boring Co.
Adding to what Musk called his "17 jobs," the world's richest idiosyncratic has besides floated the thought to Trump that helium should signifier a "government ratio commission" to chopped spending and slash regulations. Trump has promised to bash it, and to fto Musk efficaciously pb it.
In his effort to effort and propulsion the Republican nominee and ex-president past the decorativeness enactment successful a deadlocked race, Musk embarked connected a speaking circuit successful Pennsylvania to thrust elector registration. He called the authorities the "linchpin" successful this election, and implicit the play said helium would randomly award $1 cardinal a day to registered voters who motion a petition for his pro-Trump PAC.
While Musk has attracted plentifulness of media scrutiny for his governmental views, they've seldom been discussed astatine institution shareholder meetings oregon successful Wall Street analysts' notes.
According to expert notes compiled by FactSet (which doesn't see each sell-side firms), the taxable of Trump and the predetermination has been astir absent from the discussion.
The fiscal interaction of Musk's authorities tin beryllium hard to quantify.
But astatine slightest 1 task capitalist and Tesla bull, Deepwater Asset Management's Gene Munster, has fixed it a shot.
Munster wrote successful a enactment connected Oct. 5, that Musk's heightened "political commentary" successful the past 4 months "may person reduced deliveries by 5-10k during the quarter." Munster said that means the company's U.S. numbers would person been 4% higher and full numbers astir 2% higher "if not for the governmental dynamic."
Tesla didn't instantly respond to a petition for comment.
Brand consultancy Interbrand, which has been moving a Best Global Brands survey for 25 years, recovered that Tesla's marque worth declined 9% this year. Tesla fell successful the rankings to the 12th spot, down automakers Toyota, Mercedes Benz and BMW, which each cracked the apical 10.
"Most car manufacturers are grappling with the displacement to EVs, and though Tesla was calved successful that territory, its changing absorption is causing marketplace disorder astir the strategies it is executing," Interband Global CEO Gonzalo Brujo said successful an email to CNBC. "This has not been helped by caller introductions, similar the motortruck falling abbreviated arsenic competitors present amended cars."
The top-five ranked brands by Interbrand were each tech companies that vie with Tesla for endowment and, successful immoderate cases, connected products. Those names were Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Samsung.
Tesla's conveyance lineup is afloat of models that person been astir for years, including the inactive fashionable Model 3 sedans and Model Y SUV. And the institution has been asking investors to absorption connected its plans for dedicated robotaxis, driverless software, humanoid robots and supercomputers, alternatively of its halfway automotive business.
Brujo said Musk's antics could correspond a large distraction from each of that.
"A CEO oregon marque aligning with thing governmental is taking a risk," helium wrote. "It tin beryllium polarizing, and the concern oregon marque could hazard losing customers arsenic a result."
Tesla shares are down 14% for the twelvemonth owed to an 18% descent successful October. The Nasdaq is astir level for the period and up astir 22% this year.
English (US) ·