RT

Elon polls Twitter on selling $21B worth of Tesla stock — but it’s really about the billionaires tax debate

Tuesday, November 9, 2021 by Snacks
Didn’t expect this in the feed [Chris Gonz/EyeEm via Getty Images]

Didn’t expect this in the feed [Chris Gonz/EyeEm via Getty Images]

A strange shareholder vote… unfolded on Twitter. The proposed billionaires tax, which would’ve required US billionaires to pay taxes on unsold stocks, died just hours after its release last month. But Elon Musk revived the tax convo over the weekend by asking his 63M Twitter followers if he should sell 10% of his Tesla shares — about $21B worth of stock — to trigger a tax payment. For context: Elon doesn’t pay much in regular income taxes since he doesn’t receive a salary. How the Twitterverse responded:

  • 58% said Musk should sell, which would mean he’d owe $10B+ in taxes on the sale.
  • Tesla shares fell 5% yesterday, even though Elon hasn’t sold yet — though he’s pledged to abide by the poll’s outcome.

The poll story isn’t the whole story... Elon needs to pay $15B in taxes next year to exercise billions’ worth of stock options. Basically, he needs to sell some shares to buy more shares — and this Twitter-fueled sale would give him the cash to do it. But since Elon is Tesla’s largest shareholder, the sale could also affect Tesla’s stock price. Tesla warned its shares could slip if Elon sells part of his 17% stake.

THE TAKEAWAY

Public perception is increasingly important… And billionaires’ tax status has come under scrutiny. In June, ProPublica dropped an investigation revealing how the 25 richest people in the US pay little to no income taxes relative to their net worth. As a rising number of retail investors enter the stock market, CEOs are increasingly appealing to regular investors. Elon’s Twitter poll was an extreme example, but other companies like AMC have also made moves to try to win over individual investors.

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