Tesla Sold Stocks Worth 26 Trillion Won... Musk's Stake Actually Increased

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla
[Photo by AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, sold a large amount of stock and donated shares to charity last year, totaling $22 billion (approximately 26.3 trillion KRW), but an analysis shows that his holdings actually increased due to exercising stock options.

On the 15th (local time), CNBC cited documents submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), reporting that Musk sold Tesla shares worth about $16 billion last year and donated 5 million shares valued at $6 billion to charity. Including taxes and other costs, the total value of Tesla shares Musk disposed of last year was $22 billion.

CNBC stated, "However, by exercising stock options last year, Musk's holdings actually increased by the end of the year, expanding his control," explaining that he received stock options for 22.8 million shares worth $28 billion in 2012 and began exercising them last fall. At that time, Tesla shares were trading above $1,000, but Musk was able to purchase them at the exercise price of $6.24 per share.

CNBC further explained that because taxes were incurred from exercising the stock options, Musk simultaneously sold shares to cover the tax payments. This allowed him to accumulate more shares despite selling some holdings, thanks to the low exercise price, thereby increasing his control over the company.

Musk sold a total of 15.7 million shares for $16.4 billion, and including gifted shares, he disposed of 20.7 million shares. However, by exercising stock options, he acquired 22.8 million shares, resulting in an increase of over 2 million shares in his holdings by the end of last year. Currently, he holds 172.6 million shares, about 17% of the total, making him the largest individual shareholder.

CNBC noted that Musk conducted a poll on his social networking service (SNS) last November regarding the sale of 10% of his shares and sold shares according to the poll results, but "he earned much more through stock options," the outlet analyzed.

Meanwhile, Tesla's stock price closed at $922.43, up 5.33% on the day, continuing its two-day upward trend.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.