Tesla shares fell as much as 4.6% on Tuesday following a Consumer Reports article that described widespread reliability issues with the automaker’s all-electric Model X, raising concerns about large warranty claims. Tesla shares closed at $247.37, down 2.56% from the previous day’s close of $253.88.
The article, published on Tuesday, reported that Tesla owner message boards are filled with complaints by Model X owners about problems with the vehicle’s gull-wing doors and design issues. It also pointed to reports that the car’s massive curved windshield causes headlights and streetlights to appear distorted to drivers at night.
The report follows Tesla’s recall of 2,700 Model X cars made before March 26 due to a safety concern about their third row seats. The vehicle took years to ship to customers and has faced production delays.
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Investors might also have jitters about a proxy statement made public on Friday that says Elon Musk has achieved 50% of his 2022 goals as CEO, which puts him on track to receive $1.6 billion worth of stock options, Matt DeLorenzo, a managing editor for Kelley Blue Book told Coins2Day.
“I think it’s a combination of things today,” DeLorenzo says. “The stock options Elon has been awarded might have the market worried that whatever he does with the stock will dilute the value of it.”
DeLorenzo cautioned that while warranty claims could be a higher than expected expense for Tesla, there are still very few Model X SUVs on the road.
The market’s wild ride, Tesla is the tell:
“These bugs in the Model X, it’s not like it’s new news,” DeLorenzo says. “It’s not been a smooth launch and even Tesla has admitted they’ve had issues with the doors and those types of things. Remember, there aren’t a lot of Model Xs out there yet. This might be an overreaction.”
Tesla’s shares fell to as low as $241.26 on Tuesday before recovering later in the day.
The company’s shares has suffered a rollercoaster ride since September 2014 when its stock price nearly hit the $300 mark. Since then, its shares have dropped in February to as low as $141.74 only to recover to $265.42 by April 6. The stock price has been impacted by an influential investment firm Citron Research, which has taken a short position in the all-electric automaker’s stock and has said it expects the stock price to hit $100 a share by the end of the year. Investors who take short positions on a stock bet the asset will fall in value.
Updated: Article was updated at 4:42 p.m. ET with closing stock price.
