Its net worth remained largely unchanged on Wednesday, with Tesla’s shares only slightly lower. Musk owns nearly 18% of Tesla’s shares.
Tesla’s shares rose 743% in 2020, taking it to fifth place on the list of the most valuable companies in the stock market. And stocks continued to rise in the first weeks of 2021, gaining another 25% to a record high of $ 883.90 on January 26. The shares have fallen about 25% since then.
Even if Tesla’s stock continues to fall, Musk is likely to become much richer in 2021 and beyond.
He received four grants to buy 8.4 million Tesla shares each in 2020. Each was worth $ 4.5 billion at Friday’s closing price, after taking into account the exercise price of $ 70 per share. that Musk will have to pay. Musk is likely to receive three additional option grants this year, each as big and profitable as the ones he received in 2020.
Musk did not exercise any of his options. Executives typically exercise them when they are about to expire or to release money. Musk never sold Tesla shares.
Musk is also the largest shareholder in SpaceX, a privately held company. The company completed a new round of financing in February. Although he did not disclose the details, several published reports say that the $ 850 million he raised raised the company’s valuation by 60% to $ 74 billion.
– Chris Isidore and David Goldman of CNN Business contributed to this report.