Benzinga - by Shanthi Rexaline, Benzinga Editor.
Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management CEO Ross Gerber on Tuesday slammed Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk for the company’s dismal first-quarter performance.
What Happened: “Basically Tesla can’t sell its cars due to Elon’s behavior. Let’s stop blaming the Houthi rebels or German environmental terrorists. Or a recession that never came. Or interest rates,” Gerber said. “Only one person [is] responsible for this,” he added.
Gerber-led firm’s flagship actively-managed exchange-traded fund AdvisorShares Gerber Kawasaki ETF (NYSE: GK) holds 3,000 Tesla shares, valued at roughly $500,000. The stock has a portfolio weighting of 2.37% in the ETF.
Gerber has turned markedly bearish on Tesla amid the company’s recent travails.
The fund manager warned of a downward rerating of estimates in the wake of the first-quarter deliveries miss. “Now the analysts will take the hatchet to 2024 and 2025 EPS estimates for Tesla,” he said.SresS
Change, Need Of Hour: Calling the first-quarter deliveries of 386,000 as “crappy,” Gerber said Tesla needs a new sales strategy. “Unfortunately Tesla shareholders are paying the price for the reality Elon has created,” he added.
The fund manager also called for changes to Tesla’s board. “For over a year I’ve been warning about this potential reality. Now it’s here. It’s time for shareholders to assess the blame where due,” he said.
“The Tesla BOD should be replaced immediately with independent directors as required by law.”
In an interview with Fox News, Gerber said though the board claimed to be independent in documents, it wasn’t. The board has done nothing to stop the toxic behavior of Elon Musk on Twitter daily, he said, adding that this has damaged the brand and the board has done nothing about it.
“They, basically all work for Elon and we know it,” Gerber said.
Tesla’s EVs are best in terms of quality and performance and despite the fact if the company can’t sell vehicles, it is due to its CEO, the fund manager said. The problem is not about production but it is about sales, he added.
When asked if Musk would be successful in increasing his stake in the EV maker, Gerber said, it is unlikely, given he might have to comply with restrictions such as giving up his role at Twitter and becoming the sole CEO of Tesla.
Tesla ended Tuesday’s session down 4.90% to $166.63, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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Latest Ratings for TSLA
| Feb 2022 | Daiwa Capital | Upgrades | Neutral | Outperform |
| Feb 2022 | Piper Sandler | Maintains | Overweight | |
| Jan 2022 | Credit Suisse | Upgrades | Neutral | Outperform |
View the Latest Analyst Ratings
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