Tesla shares surged 14% on Wednesday after President-elect Donald Trump – whose campaign the electric-car maker’s CEO Elon Musk outspokenly supported – clinched a victory.
Musk’s Tesla soared on Wednesday morning as Trump was projected to win the presidency with 277 electoral votes.
The billionaire tech founder donated millions to a pro-Trump PAC, rallied on the former president’s behalf and swayed Americans to vote early with a $1 million-a-day sweepstakes.
Tesla shares have risen 15.3% so far this year, including Wednesday’s boost, while the S&P 500 has grown 24.5% in the same period.
Trump has said he would consider ending a tax credit for electric vehicle purchases, which could hamper EV makers’ sales.
But Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a note to clients that a Trump win would still have a largely positive impact for Tesla and Musk.
“Tesla has the scale and scope that is unmatched in the EV industry and this dynamic could give Musk and Tesla a clear competitive advantage in a non-EV subsidy environment, coupled by likely higher China tariffs that would continue to push away cheaper Chinese EV players (BYD, Nio, etc.) from flooding the US market over the coming years,” he said.
Ives said Trump could also push through some autonomous initiatives for Tesla and Waymo cars.
“We believe a Trump win could add $40-$50 per share to Tesla’s stock if autonomous/FSD is accelerated starting in 2025 and a tailwind for Cybercab,” the analyst said.
Clean energy stocks, meanwhile, fell Wednesday morning as investors worried Trump would toss climate and environmental policies.
Last month, Musk – the world’s richest person with a net worth of $281 billion, according to Forbes – donated a whopping $75 million to America PAC, the pro-Trump political action committee he founded earlier this year.
On X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter that Musk acquired in 2022, the Tesla founder boasts more than 200 million followers. His account links to a profile for America PAC, which says it champions “Secure Borders, Sensible Spending, Safe Cities, Fair Justice System, Free Speech and Self-Protection.”
Since Oct. 19, Musk has been hosting a $1 million-a-day giveaway for Americans who sign a petition endorsing the right to free speech and the right to bear arms. To be eligible for the six-figure prize, participants must be registered to vote.
The voter lottery was just one of Musk’s tactics to give Trump a boost in reclaiming the White House.
Last month, the techie jumped for joy onstage as he joined the former president at a Pennsylvania rally. Musk held solo events in the swing state encouraging Americans to vote early. He even planned to spend election night with the former president at his Mar-a-Lago residence, according to The Post’s coverage.
Trump has vowed to appoint Musk as the head of a new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE – a reference to the popular memecoin.
During a speech at Trump’s October rally at Madison Square Garden, Musk claimed he could save the federal budget $2 trillion as part of the government efficiency commission.
“Your money is being wasted, and the department of government efficiency is gonna fix that,” he said. “We’re going to get the government off your back and out of your pocketbook.”
