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Over 5.8k Tesla investors representing $4.1 billion are speaking out in support of Elon Musk

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Thousands of retail Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) investors have banded together to express their support of CEO Elon Musk’s and his 2018 compensation plan, which was rescinded by a Delaware judge last week. The judge’s decision, which concluded a legal complaint started by a thrash metal drummer with nine Tesla shares, was met with polarizing reactions. 

The Tesla investors’ goal was simple. They wanted to specifically affirm their vote of support for Musk’s 2018 compensation plan, whose targets have already been met, and they also requested that the Tesla Board of Directors design a new compensation plan for Musk that could take him back to 25% of the EV maker’s voting shares. The group also expressed their support to the idea of Tesla moving its state of incorporation from Delaware to Texas.

The initiative was admirable. What started as a collaborative effort on social media led by accounts such as Alexandra Merz (@TeslaBoomerMama) and Amy Steffens (@_sftahoe) ballooned to 5,821 Tesla shareholders representing 23,337,127 shares signing a letter addressed to the Tesla Board of Directors in just four days. The Tesla investors’ accumulated shares are substantial, as it corresponds to over $4 billion worth of shares as of Monday’s intraday. 

The Tesla shareholders’ letter can be viewed below. 

Shareholder Letter to Tesla’s Board of Directors

The shareholders (listed in the attachment)

  1.  Support unequivocally that Tesla’s state of incorporation is changed from Delaware to Texas, where Tesla is already headquartered. Tesla staying incorporated in Delaware is untenable if Shareholder Votes will be rescinded.
  2. Would like the Board to explore options to affirm the shareholder vote in support of keeping the Tesla’s 2018 CEO Compensation Plan active and in place. Tesla shareholders don’t want their votes disenfranchised. Tesla shareholders elected the Tesla Board of Directors and were aware of the Board members’ relationship with Elon Musk. The shareholders chose them. The recent decision by Judge McCormick to rescind the 2018 CEO compensation plan is a dangerous precedent for all shareholders in American corporations.
  3.  Would like the Board to design a new CEO Compensation Plan along the lines of the 2018 Plan. The new Plan tranches will require Tesla to achieve ambitious performance and market cap milestones.
  4. The performance milestones could include FSD reaching level 5 autonomy, Tesla Energy achieving annual kWh goals, the next generation EV platform reaching volume production, and Optimus in volume production. The market capitalization milestones could reflect each $500 billion- or $1 trillion-dollar increase in Tesla’s overall value, or whatever intermediate milestones make sense, as well as one for surpassing the combined value of Saudi Aramco and Apple. The new Plan’s tranches will vest shares to Mr. Musk in such a way as to ultimately grant him 25+ percent of voting shares. If Tesla incorporates in a State allowing super voting shares, we endorse this, too.

The shareholders filling out this form agree that their name and details will be disclosed to the Board of Directors of Tesla and may become public. 

What is quite remarkable about the Tesla investors’ efforts is the fact that it included shareholders from across the spectrum. As per the group’s letter, the 5,821 Tesla shareholders comprise investors that hold anywhere from one TSLA share to thousands of TSLA shares. They also include investors who have been with the EV maker since 2010 and those who only bought shares last month. Overall, the retail investors’ efforts are quite admirable, and they show that Tesla still has a dedicated following among its shareholders until today. 

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Over 5.8k Tesla investors representing $4.1 billion are speaking out in support of Elon Musk
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