Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), should sell around 10% of his Tesla stock, according to 57.9% of those who voted in a Twitter poll asking if he should do so.
After the vote, Musk said, “I was prepared to accept either outcome.”
The world’s richest person tweeted on Saturday that he would offload 10% of his stock if users approved the proposal. Musk has previously said he would have to exercise a large number of stock options in the next three months, which would create a big tax bill. Selling some of his stock could free up funds to pay the taxes.
As of June 30, Musk’s shareholding in Tesla came to about 170.5 million shares, and selling 10% would amount to close to $21 billion based on Friday’s closing, according to Reuters calculations.
More than 3.5 million people voted in the survey.
“I suggest selling 10% of my Tesla shares because much has been saying recently about unrealized gains being a form of tax avoidance,” Musk stated on Saturday, adding that he does not take a cash income or bonus “from anybody” and just owns stock.
Senate Democrats have proposed taxing billionaires’ stocks and other tradable assets to help finance President Joe Biden’s social spending plan and close a loophole that allows them to avoid paying capital gains taxes indefinitely.
Musk announced on Twitter a week ago that he would sell $6 billion in Tesla stock and donate the proceeds to the UN’s World Food Program (WFP) if the agency gave greater information about how it used its funds.
Bullish on Tesla Musk’s probable stock sale, according to Gary Black, portfolio manager of The Future Fund, would result in “1-2 days of minor selling pressure,” but there would be strong institutional demand to buy the shares at a discount.
