Seeing the writing on the wall, some of Elon Musk and Tesla's biggest boosters are dumping their stock position in the company in large part over his actions since he assumed a major role in Donald Trump's administration.
According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Tesla's precipitous stock decline is driven, in part, by longtime fans with one admitting too much damage has been done to the brand to make it worthwhile to stick around.
As the Journal's Hannah Erin Lang and Owen Tucker-Smith wrote, "Just a few months ago, investors were betting that a second Trump administration would be great news for Tesla. Instead, the longtime stock-market highflier has plummeted in 2025. Shares have fallen more than 40% this year, erasing about $536 billion in market value. The stock is on track for a nine-week streak of losses—its longest on record."
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In an interview, investor and data architect Michael Hanna admitted his portfolio once was 25 percent Tesla stock but he dumped them in February despite being a supporter of some of Musk and Donald Trump's initiatives.
Now he says he is stunned by the "chaotic" nature of Musk's DOGE cuts and said of Tesla, "I think the brand is irreparably damaged at this point.”
With the Journal report noting, "... investors’ devotion is being tested. Some sellers say they are driven by disapproval of Musk’s government cuts, or moral opposition to his more controversial social-media posts," Tesla owner and investor Edward Sanchez claimed he sold off his stock and now has plans to rid himself on his 2016 Model S car too.
“It was a very innovative car. There was nothing at all like it back then. It was cool to be associated with the brand and with such a smart person,” he stated before adding that Trump and Musk's politics have put him off.
Adding that his financial adviser suggested he hold onto his stock because it might bounce back, he recalled he replied, “I told him, ‘I don’t care, I want out.’”
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