Suddenly, Tesla’s Elon Musk is Twitter’s biggest stakeholder →
source: seattletimes.comTom Krisher and Michelle Chapman reporting for The Associated Press:
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has taken a 9% stake in Twitter to become its largest shareholder after raising questions about the social media platform’s dedication to free speech.
The ultimate aim of Musk’s 73.5 million share purchase worth $2.9 billion, based on the closing price Friday, is not clear. Yet in recent weeks Musk, who has 80 million Twitter followers and posts there often, has questioned free speech on Twitter and whether the platform is undermining democracy.
The regulatory filing Monday describes Musk as a long-term investor looking to minimize his buying and selling of the shares.
He has also pondered starting a rival social media network, and industry analysts are skeptical about whether the mercurial CEO would remain on the sidelines for long.
“We would expect this passive stake as just the start of broader conversations with the Twitter board/management that could ultimately lead to an active stake and a potential more aggressive ownership role of Twitter,” Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities said in a client note early Monday.
Twitter’s stock surged 20% before the opening bell Monday.
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