Tesla shares plunge nearly 10% after Musk wants to take the company private.
Elon Musk told the New York Times that his tweet about taking the company private was not reviewed by anyone.
(Reuters)- Tesla shares fell about 9 percent on Friday after CEO Elon Musk told the New York Times that his tweet about taking the company private had not been reviewed by anyone.
Shares of the electric carmaker are heading for their worst day in nearly five months, with Musk's comments coming at a time when US market regulators are pressing Tesla executives for details on the amount of information the CEO has shared with them.
At 15:15 PM (Brasilia time), the company's shares were down about 8,9 percent, at $305.
The newspaper also reported that the automaker is moving to find a second executive to help ease some of the pressure on Musk, who has been dealing with Model 3 production problems and has been criticized for his erratic behavior on Twitter.
“There are growing concerns that the board may consider changing his role as CEO and chairman of the board, and there may be pressure from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for this to happen as well, based on his activity on Twitter,” said Ivan Feinseth, an analyst at Tigress Financial Partners.
"While this may be a governance issue, it would be very disappointing for the company because Elon Musk's vision and personality are so deeply ingrained in the company."
Musk said in the interview that he has no plans to abandon his dual role at the automaker as CEO and chairman of the board.
In the hour-long interview, during which Musk became emotional several times, he said: “This past year has been the most difficult and painful of my career. It has been excruciating.”
Musk surprised markets last week by tweeting that he was considering taking Tesla private for $420 per share and that he had secured funding.
By Nivedita Balu