Elon Musk’s potential $56 billion pay package was the reason Europe’s largest pension fund sold its entire Tesla $TSLA stake recently, as the firm sold all of its $585 million worth of shares.
A spokesperson for Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP said to Bloomberg that “We had a problem” with Musk’s pay package, which is still in limbo after it was ruled to be unreasonable by Delaware Chancery Court Judge Kathaleen McCormick.
The massive $56 billion was voted in by Tesla shareholders on two separate occasions, once in 2018 and another last year. The second vote for the pay package to be given to Musk followed an initial ruling from Judge McCormick that invalidated the $56 billion.
Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP was one shareholder that voted against Musk’s pay package.
A Dutch newspaper known as Het Financieele Dagblad first reported the story but also listed Tesla’s working conditions as a reason to sell its stake in Tesla.
🚨 ‘WE HAD A PROBLEM’: Europe’s largest pension fund, Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP, sold its entire stake in Tesla $TSLA, an estimated $585 million because it “had a problem” with @elonmusk‘s $56bn pay package.
It also sold because of “costs, potential stock return, and… pic.twitter.com/tR78hX0p3S
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) January 14, 2025
The timing of the sale is interesting, to say the least. Judge McCormick denied the pay package once again in December, and Tesla appealed the ruling. It is hard to see what will change the Judge’s mind at this point, especially as she has already ruled against it twice.
Some believe Musk will still get the pay package one way or another. Wedbush’s Dan Ives wrote to investors in December:
“We continue to believe Tesla and Musk will fight this tooth and nail all the way to the Supreme Court in Delaware and then potentially to the Federal system as this remains a frustrating headache for Tesla, Musk, and its shareholders. We also believe this case could be the catalyst for more public companies to leave the state of Delaware for their corporation status as the legal precedents set in this Tesla/ Musk case is very eye opening to public Boards around the country and go against shareholders vote in a dangerous precedent in our view.”
Need accessories for your Tesla? Check out the Teslarati Marketplace:
Please email me with questions and comments at joey@teslarati.com. I’d love to chat! You can also reach me on Twitter @KlenderJoey, or if you have news tips, you can email us at tips@teslarati.com.
