Tesla commodity sellers lose $ 40 billion in 2020. Elon Musk has more than tripled

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His personal net worth has grown as one of his SpaceX rockets, growing by more than $ 100 billion. And his strongest critics, alias investors who have short-circuited adze (TSLA) stock market in the event that the stock price would fall, lost a record $ 40.1 billion betting against it, according to analysis S3 Partners.

Those critics, with whom Musk has had a very harsh, very public war of words over the years, managed to get a healthy return if Tesla shares fell in value, but risked heavy losses if the stock continued to gain.

And, boy, did he win, growing by 743% during the year.

The $ 40.1 billion loss made by investors who shortened Tesla shares did not compare to the losses suffered by the short-term investors of any other company – last year or ever – according to Ihor Dusaniwsky, CEO at S3 and an expert on the subject. .

In fact, the losses incurred by Tesla shorts were more than the losses for the next nine companies – combined. Losses on no. 2 Apple (AAPL) in 2020 it reached 6.7 billion dollars, which is just a little more than the Tesla shorts lost in December alone. Amazon (AMZN) it cost $ 5.8 billion in shorts, according to S3.
Tesla has long been a favorite piece for short investors, who have controlled about 19% of the stock since 2020. For all those who believe the company is a leader in clean energy, changing the paradigm, with unlimited potential, other investors they claim to be an overburdened niche player who will soon be overwhelmed by larger and more established carmakers.

Many of the shorts were forced to admit defeat last year. About two-thirds of the short positions were canceled in 2020, which in itself was a factor that contributed to the growth of Tesla shares, as short investors were forced to buy shares at higher prices to leave their positions.

“There was a light tail wind in the Tesla price movement throughout the year,” Dusaniwsky said.

But the year ended with short investors still holding about 5.5 percent of Tesla’s stock, which equates to a $ 31 billion bet against the company’s future prospects. For comparison, there are $ 13.3 billion and $ 10.2 billion currently wagered against Apple and Amazon, respectively, with shorts controlling less than 1% of each of those companies’ shares.

Musk’s very profitable year

Musk regularly wrestled with short sellers, taking photos of them on Twitter and in public comments. But beyond any joy he feels over last year’s losses, their collective pain does not compare to his own personal gains.

The 170-million-share Musk package has grown by $ 106 billion in 2020, and that’s just part of the earnings it has gained from Tesla’s performance. It entered the year with options to buy another 22.9 million shares, when it was adjusted to split the company’s five to one shares. These options increased by $ 14.2 billion.

Tesla has reached half a million targets by 2020
During 2020, Musk also qualified for additional 33.8 million share options, part of its clearing package exclusively with options that it collects when the company reaches certain market values ​​and operational targets. It qualified for four separate tranches of options in 2020, which ended the year worth $ 21.5 billion after considering the exercise price.

And it is poised to qualify for two more tranches of options to buy another 16.9 million shares earlier this year, given the company’s recent financial and market performance. These additional options would be worth $ 10.7 billion based on the stock price at the end of the year.

As mentioned, Musk should soon control enough options to buy another 73.5 million Tesla shares at an average price of about $ 50 per share. Currently, more than $ 700 is being traded.

Musk has not yet exercised any of the options he now has, which is not unusual. Directors who have been granted stock options rarely exercise them until they are ready to sell the shares or the options are about to expire.

All this left Musk the second richest man in the world, with a net worth estimated by Forbes at $ 162 million, behind only Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, whose net worth stands at $ 187 billion. USD. Bezos’ current holdings on Amazon have grown to “only” $ 75 billion in 2020.

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