Tesla stock hits record $420 fulfilling Musk’s infamous 2018 tweet

San Francisco, Dec 24 (IANS) Elon Musk lost his position as Tesla Chairman after posting a notorious tweet in August last year that he was “considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured”.

Over a year later, Tesla stock briefly hits $420 per share on Monday and the CEO could not hide his joy.

“Whoa a the stock is so high lol,” Musk tweeted.

“Stock art,” he added.

According to CNBC, Tesla stock reached an all-time high of $422.01 before closing Monday at $419.22 — up more than 3 per cent and bringing Tesla’s market cap to over $75 billion.

In the 16 months that followed the August tweet, Tesla stock plummeted to a three-year low just under $177 per share in June this year.

Musk stunned investors again after the infamous tweet, smoking marijuana during a TV interview.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Musk over the tweet, saying he misled investors by claiming falsely he had lined up funding for the take-private transaction.

Musk reached a settlement with the SEC, agreeing to give up his role as Tesla Chairman and pay a $20 million fine.

According to the settlement, all tweets from Musk about Tesla’s financial health, sales or delivery numbers would have to be pre-approved by a company lawyer.

In February, the SEC again held Musk in contempt of court for allegedly violating a previous public disclosure settlement.

Tesla surprised Wall Street in October by registering a profitable third quarter with a total revenue of $6.3 billion riding on sales of its Model S, Model X and Model 3 electric cars.

In the third quarter, automotive revenues were $5.35 billion. Tesla said it expected to deliver between 360,000 and 400,000 vehicles this year, representing 45-65 per cent growth.