Tesla stock rout puts market cap below $500 billion

The selloff in Tesla Inc. shares that accelerated after the electric-vehicle maker was reported last week to be planning to temporarily suspend output at its Shanghai factory pushed the company’s market valuation briefly below the coveted half-trillion-dollar mark.

Shares of the EV industry leader have been in a freefall over the past few months, sinking nearly 40% since the end of September, compared with a 12% advance in the S&P 500 Index.

The stock closed down 4.1% at $160.95 in New York, recouping some of the losses from earlier in the session. The shares fell as much as 6.5% on Tuesday, briefly taking its market capitalization below $500 billion. Concerns about EV demand, as well as Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk’s preoccupation with the overhaul of Twitter Inc. have both weighed heavily on the stock this year.


Tuesday’s move was accompanied by heavy volume, nearly double the company’s 30-day average. A block of 3.11 million shares traded at a market value of $500 million late in the afternoon.

Tesla first crossed above the $500 billion threshold in November 2020, after its share price jumped more than sixfold ahead of its inclusion in the S&P 500. A seemingly insatiable investor appetite for anything related to EVs, and more broadly technology, helped fuel part of that rally in a cash-rich market.

Spring forward two years and investors are now in a very different mood. Expensively priced stocks, whose valuations are largely pinned to the businesses’ future success and growth, have taken a big hit this year, as soaring inflation, an aggressive Federal Reserve, geopolitical turmoil and the threat of a recession make stable investments look more attractive.

In fact, Tesla is far from the only company in its league to see massive erosion in its value this year. Every member of the NYSE FANG+ Index has seen close to one-fifth of their market capitalization evaporating.

Still, Tesla’s own troubles have made matters worse. While the company struggled to cope with persistent supply shortages, soaring raw material costs and production disruptions, especially in China, Musk’s mercurial takeover of social-media company Twitter and his intent focus on turning around that platform has worried investors that the EV maker was losing his attention at a crucial time.

As Tesla shares tumbled back to retrace all of the gains accumulated over the past two years, it lost its membership in the trillion-dollar valuation club, and gave up its spot as the fifth most-valuable company in the S&P 500 to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. And the many EV startups, which had seen their market caps balloon when Tesla shares were skyrocketing, have also seen their valuations come down to earth.

Shares of Rivian Automotive Inc. have lost 76% of their value this year, while Lucid Group Inc. has retreated 79%.