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Tesla executives including Board Chair Robyn Denholm and board member Kimbal Musk, the brother of CEO Elon Musk, have also sold millions in stock in recent months, following a Delaware judgment which required the two executives, among others, to pay back a collective $919 million in compensation to Tesla, CFO Dive reported.
The stock sales by company executives are occurring as Tesla faces ongoing challenges, with its latest slump in vehicle deliveries part of an ongoing nosedive in global sales. In Europe, backlash against CEO Elon Musk’s U.S. political activities contributed to sales of its EVs plummeting by just over 40% in February compared to the prior year, according to March data from the European Automotive Manufacturers’ Association. Tesla has also seen sales in China slump, though the launch of its Model Y in the market enabled it to climb into third place for sales in March, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing data from the China Passenger Car Association.
Meanwhile, Tesla’s declining sales represent growing opportunities for the EV maker’s competitors, many of which saw their sales grow over the past month. Global sales of Volkswagen AG’s EV models, for example, climbed by 59% year-over-year, the German automaker said Wednesday — skyrocketing by 113% in Europe and 51% in the U.S., according to the release.
In another blow last month, Tesla also issued a recall of its Cybertruck model after issuing a warning that an exterior panel on the car could potentially detach while driving, AP News reported.
As it fields these headwinds, Tesla’s share price has continued to seesaw over the past week as CEO Musk butts heads with the Trump administration over the potential impacts of tariffs — the EV maker’s stock has dipped up and down in the face of rapid, often-conflicting announcements made by the Trump administration regarding their tariff strategy since April 2.
Despite Musk’s close relationship with President Donald Trump, Tesla could be hard-hit by tariffs on the auto and electric vehicle space in the country, especially as trade partners such as Canada respond with tariffs of their own.
On Tuesday, Canada announced 25% tariffs on U.S. vehicles which were not compliant with a North American trade deal between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada would take effect Wednesday — following the Trump administration’s bid to impose a 25% tariff on all foreign-made vehicles, the WSJ reported. On Wednesday, the Trump administration reversed course , walking back tariffs on most countries — excepting China — to a 10% universal rate for all trade partners.
Tesla’s stock rose in the aftermath of the Wednesday announcement, rebounding by 22% to $272.20 at the end of market trading Wednesday.