It hasn’t been a good week for Tesla stock (TSLA) — or a good month, for that matter. The electric vehicle (EV) producer has been mostly trending downward for weeks, occasionally garnering some slight momentum but never enough for it to stay in the green for long.
As share prices have continued to decline, Elon Musk’s leadership has come sharply into question. Even noted TSLA bull Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities has raised concerns about the CEO, speculating that changes will have to be made.
As it turns out, though, Ives isn’t the only financial expert who isn’t optimistic about Tesla’s projects under Musk’s leadership. A well-known investor with a sizable TSLA stake recently gave an interview in which he laid his negative feelings toward Musk on the line.
Ross Gerber believes that it's time for a major change, and a much more serious one than what Ives is advocating for.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk may be trouble, as investors raise concerns about his leadership.
A major investor is sounding the alarm on Musk’s leadership
The founder and CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management, Ross Gerber has been an outspoken market commentator for years. As anyone who follows his social media profiles knows, he’s especially focused on clean energy.
That’s likely what drove him to invest in Tesla, a company in which he reportedly has a stake worth $105 million. But for months, Gerber has been sounding the alarm on Musk’s leadership, calling his tactics into question.
In September 2024, Gerber set a six-month deadline for Musk to help Tesla turn things around or he would exit his position. While he doesn’t seem to have done that yet, Gerber recently made it extremely clear he isn’t happy with Musk and believes the company needs a new leader.
“There’s no question he’s been committed to his job at the government,” he stated in an interview with Sky News. “That’s where he’s been spending his time. He is not running Tesla... it’s time for somebody to run Tesla. The business has been neglected for too long.
There’s too many important things Tesla is doing, so either Elon should come back to Tesla and be the CEO of Tesla and give up his other jobs or he should focus on the government and keep doing what he’s doing but find a suitable CEO of Tesla.”
Since then, Gerber has raised even more red flags. He recently shared a post on X, highlighting how underwhelming Tesla’s Cybertruck sales have been. Prior to that, he touted the autonomous driving technology progress made by Tesla rival Waymo, implying that he believes it will beat Tesla to that market.
As Musk has made it clear that he is more focused on his work with the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and less on his companies, concern has grown that this shift may be compromising TSLA stock. Experts expressed similar apprehensions when he purchased Twitter (now X) in 2022, but the combination of his divided attention and the damage to Tesla’s brand as a result of his pivot toward politics is likely even more concerning.
As Sherwood News notes, Tesla has spent years highlighting that Musk’s responsibilities to multiple companies do pose a risk for the stock. “Although Mr. Musk spends significant time with Tesla and is highly active in our management, he does not devote his full time and attention to Tesla,” the company stated in a recent 10K filing.
Now, it seems that Musk’s quest to run multiple companies and a government office has finally reached a boiling point as Gerber calls for him to step down, claiming it is in the best interest of Tesla for Musk to appoint a CEO who will actually pay attention to the company.
Calls for Elon Musk to step down from Tesla are increasing
Gerber isn’t the only financial market expert who believes Tesla may be best served by Musk stepping down. As shares have trended downward for months, speculation has risen that the company needs a leader who isn’t prioritizing other things and neglecting his responsibilities as CEO.
John Engle, president of Almington Capital Merchant Bankers, spoke to TheStreet about this topic. While he noted that Tesla would face some risk if it replaced Musk as CEO, he also highlighted the risks that keeping him on may pose.
“Musk's increasingly erratic behavior, combined with an apparent lack of any coherent plans for delivering on the massive growth promises he’s made over the years, have already weighed on his reputation with the general public,” he states.
“He has become extremely polarizing, which has definitely overshadowed his once-mighty reputation for far-sighted strategic leadership and innovative genius.”
Another expert has told TheStreet that he believes the damage done by Musk may be permanent. “Musk built it and now he’s sinking it,” notes David Materazzi, CEO of Galileo FX. “A new CEO could stop the bleeding, but the damage to the brand is done. It may be permanent.”
