On June 13th, Musk posted that Tesla's two shareholder resolutions were passed by a significant margin. The pictures shared by Musk show that both resolutions (Musk's salary and Tesla headquarters relocation to Texas) have been passed by shareholder votes.
Musk's 10-year long-term compensation plan
Total value of approximately $56 billion
According to reports, Tesla approved Musk's 10-year long-term compensation plan in 2018, which includes 12 sets of market value and business objectives. If Musk can achieve all his goals, he will accumulate 12% of Tesla's stock options as a reward, with a total value of approximately $56 billion. This plan is also considered by foreign media to be the largest executive compensation plan in American history. Based on Tesla's current closing price on June 11th, these options are worth approximately $512 billion.
At that time, it was not easy for Musk to obtain full compensation. Because the market value target for the final incentive stage was as high as $650 billion, while Tesla's market value at that time was approximately $59 billion. However, shortly after the announcement of this long-term compensation plan, Tesla's development entered a fast lane, with a market value exceeding $1 trillion in 2021. As of the close of the US stock market on the 7th, Tesla's market value was approximately $566 billion.
In 2022, some shareholders of Tesla sued Musk, claiming that he had spent most of his energy on other companies such as SpaceX and used his control over the company and board to finalize long-term compensation plans. Therefore, shareholders hope to abolish the plan. In January, a Delaware judge declared Musk's long-term compensation plan invalid on the grounds of "unfairness to shareholders.". Regarding this, Musk stated that he plans to relocate Tesla's registered address from Delaware to Texas.
Zhu Xiaotong and Tao Lin, senior executives of Truss
Canvassing for Musk's sky high salary plan
On June 12th, Zhu Xiaotong, Senior Vice President of Tesla's Automotive Business, spoke on X to rally Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
He wrote, "Tesla's goals are very grand. Most people only see the surface, but beneath the surface lies a grand vision that requires Elon's wisdom, courage, and decisiveness to achieve. Our shareholders must know how extraordinary our journey is."
Tesla's Vice President of External Affairs, Tao Lin, posted on Weibo, saying, "I have personally experienced many important moments since joining the company ten years ago. It is hard to imagine whether we could have achieved these goals without Elon's wisdom, courage, and decisiveness. Tesla still has many grand blueprints, and I believe Elon's leadership is crucial for us to achieve these goals.". I hope all shareholders can cast their sacred vote
Tesla China's official account also announced, "Along the way, Elon Musk has led Tesla from a loss making company to a company that changes the world. He has created over 735 billion US dollars (approximately 5.3 trillion RMB) in huge value for Tesla shareholders. Musk has fulfilled his promise, and now it is time for us to fulfill it. Tesla shareholders, please give us your valuable vote."
On Musk's social media platform X, Tesla's official account also published an article reviewing Musk's significant achievements leading Tesla along the way and calling on Tesla shareholders to cast a valuable vote for Musk.
Musk:
About 90% of retail shareholders support me
Musk previously posted that approximately 90% of retail shareholders voted in support of his compensation plan. According to Bloomberg, this is crucial as approximately 45% of non insider held stocks available for trading are held by retail shareholders.
Public information shows that Musk has not received any cash salary from Tesla since 2019, and he ultimately led Tesla to achieve all seemingly impossible goals step by step at the time.
Tesla Institutional Shareholders
Accusing Musk of using insider information to cash out billions
On June 11th, an institutional shareholder of Tesla accused Elon Musk of using insider information to sell Tesla stocks and earn billions of dollars in a lawsuit, and demanded that the court order the Tesla CEO to return "illegal profits.".
According to a lawsuit filed by Tesla's institutional shareholder, the Rhode Island Employee Retirement System (ERSRI), in the Delaware Court of Equity, Musk and his brother, Tesla director Kimbal Musk, sold $30 billion worth of shares in the electric vehicle manufacturer between the end of 2021 and the end of 2022, just before the company's stock price fell.
The lawsuit points out that Musk artificially raised the stock price and sold the stock. At the time, he concealed his plan to use the money to purchase the social media platform Twitter (now renamed X). The lawsuit also added that when Musk learned that Tesla's delivery volume was far below public expectations, he sold Tesla stocks ahead of schedule.
The lawsuit filed by ERSRI on Tuesday also claimed that Musk was "unfaithful" to Tesla in several incidents, including transferring Tesla employees to work at X; After Musk acquired X, Tesla still had to pay advertising fees; Also assist xAI in hiring Tesla employees; Transfer artificial intelligence semiconductors for Tesla to X and xAI.
ERSRI holds approximately 140000 shares of Tesla stock. On Tuesday, Tesla's stock price closed at $170.66, with ERSRI's stock valued at approximately $24 million.
Currently, Musk is under investigation by regulatory agencies to determine whether he violated federal securities laws when acquiring Twitter in 2022.