Tesla's market value halved, short sellers made a profit of $16 billion!

After being battered for many years, short sellers of Tesla have finally welcomed a turning point.

According to data from S3 Partners, since Tesla's stock price fell from its peak of $479 last year, short sellers have accumulated $16.2 billion in paper profits. During the same period, Tesla's market value plummeted by more than $700 billion, and Elon Musk's net worth has also shrunk by more than $100 billion.

Data shows that in the past month, the number of Tesla shares being shorted has increased by 16.3%, reaching 71.5 million shares, accounting for 2.6% of the company's total shares. Clean Energy Transition, a hedge fund managing $1.5 billion, began shorting Tesla several years ago. Its managing partner, Per Lekander, stated:

Tesla once had a very strong brand value, but Musk has completely destroyed it.

For hedge funds shorting Tesla stock, it is truly a moment of "bitterness turning to sweetness."

For years, this automaker has been one of the most popular short targets in the U.S. stock market, with some investors believing that the company's valuation has become increasingly detached from economic reality. By the spring of 2020, the number of shares being shorted was about 300 million.

However, in the two years leading up to mid-2021, the stock price surged by over 1500%, resulting in a total paper loss of $64.5 billion for short sellers. Musk has repeatedly mocked Tesla's shorts in the past. Last year, he stated that once the company "fully resolves the autonomy" issue, anyone holding a short position would be "eliminated."

Musk's self-destructive behavior, Tesla's performance falls short of expectations

There are many factors that have contributed to the destruction of Tesla's stock price, but Musk's political stance is undoubtedly a significant driver.

Musk's public support for far-right political parties in Europe has led to a decline in Tesla's car sales in Europe. Additionally, as the head of the so-called "government efficiency department," his significant cuts to federal government spending have sparked strong backlash.

Moreover, Tesla's fourth-quarter performance falling short of expectations is also one of the factors contributing to the stock price decline. Last week, the company warned in a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative that Trump's trade war could expose it to retaliatory tariffs, thereby increasing the cost of manufacturing cars in the U.S.

Last week, JP Morgan lowered Tesla's year-end target price from $135 to $120, stating in the report:

In the history of the automotive industry, it is hard to find a brand that has lost so much value in such a short period of time