Musk Didn't Have to Dump More Tesla to Fund Twitter, But Investors Still Feel Hangover

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) investors can breathe a sigh of relief as it appears Elon Musk didn't need to sell any more shares to fund his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, which closed on Friday. According to SEC rules, Musk would have had to file a Form 4 within two business days following the transaction date. That didn't happen, suggesting he didn't need any more funds to close the deal.

Tesla investors, however, still are feeling a hangover from Mr. Musk's Twitter escapades. First, there is concern that Musk will be distracted by Twitter, as he dropped the entire board, so will be the lone director. He also announced he will step in as CEO after firing Parag Agrawal and other executives. In addition, some of Musk's Tesla shares were pledged as collateral for the Twitter deal, so there is still a worry that if Tesla shares drop too much the banks can force him to sell some to cover the margin calls.

Musk will have some friendly faces continuing with him in a private Twitter, it has been disclosed. Twitter co-founder, Jack Dorsey, rolled over some 18 million shares into the deal. Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud rolled 34,948,975 shares, and Cathie Wood's ARK is investing via its new ARK Ventures. In the past, Oracle's Larry Ellison said he would throw a billion or two into the Twitter deal. It is unclear if Ellison made good on that promise.

By StreetInsider.com Staff

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