TSLA Director Gracias Files to Sell $610 Million Following Stock's Surge

Mike Stein - Business and Product Development Lead

[Click here to read this article on EZ-Insider]

Shares of electric vehicle company Tesla Inc. (TSLA) have been surging recently, due in part to an October 24 report of better-than-expected third quarter earnings and revenue, and the disclosure of a bulk order of vehicles by rental car company Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZZ). Shares hit an all-time high of $1,094.94 on October 26. On October 28, the SEC disseminated a Form 144 notification from Director Antonio J. Gracias, disclosing their intent to sell up to 338,493 shares for an aggregate of $351 million. Gracias' AJG Growth Fund also filed an additional Form 144 to sell 250,000 shares, bringing the total intended disposition to 588,493 shares for a total of $610 million. The Goldman Sachs-brokered 144s disclosed that a portion of the shares sold would be acquired via the exercise of stock options.

[Click here to read about Gracias' prior sale]

If completed as filed, the sale would be Gracias' largest of 17 at the company, and would dwarf his $128 million sale in February. Shares of TSLA have continued to rise, and hit a new high at the time of publication.

Gracias has done well timing his prior sales at local peaks in TSLA share price, adding interest to his intended disposition. His large intended disposition could represent a profit-taking opportunity for investors who are looking to lock in some of their gains from the stock. Given that shares have consistently moved upwards in the long-term following his previous dispositions, investors may not want to view this trade as a sign that TSLA is going to reverse course in the long-term.

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