Tesla Stock Jumps to Punish Early Sellers

Tesla (TSLA:US) stock has staged a massive rally in recent weeks to trade over around 60% of its 2-year lows set earlier this month.

The relief rally in Tesla shares, given that the stock dropped about 65% in 2022, was fueled by stronger-than-expected Q4 results that the electric vehicle (EV) maker reported last week. Tesla posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.19 on revenue of $24.32 billion, beating the analyst expectations for earnings of $1.13 on revenue of $24.16 billion.

Moreover, Tesla stock was boosted by comments made by CEO Elon Musk, who said on the earnings call that Tesla is looking to produce 2 million EV units in 2023.

“If it’s a smooth year, without some big supply chain interruption or massive problem we have the potential to do 2 million cars this year. I think there would be demand for that, too,” Musk said on a call.

Given that Tesla stock price closed at $177.90 on Friday, it means that several Congress members were selling too fast. Just a few days ago, Congress member Mike Garcia disclosed that he sold Tesla shares on December 20, when the stock closed at $137.80. Similarly, his fellow Republican colleague Chris Jacobs was also selling Tesla shares, although he did it on December 12 when they closed at $167.82.

Earlier in December, Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul disclosed he sold 5,000 Tesla shares at an average price of $140.38, resulting in a total loss of $511,197.