Amid a positive session for the major indices on Friday afternoon, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) took its cue, bouncing up more than 3%. Earlier on the day, outspoken investor and frequent critic Leo KoGuan stated he would double down on TSLA stock on Jan. 27.
Specifically, KoGuan tweeted that in the month so far, the investor – who represents Tesla’s third-largest individual shareholder – added 1.7 million shares of TSLA stock to his portfolio. Further, on Jan. 27, the self-proclaimed “fanboy” of Tesla CEO Elon Musk declared intentions to buy one million more shares.
The intended date of acquisition carries significance because Tesla plans to disclose its earnings results for the fourth quarter of 2022 on Jan. 25, following the closing bell. According to Capital.com, analysts expect the electric vehicle (EV) stalwart to post earnings per share of $1.13. In addition, they anticipate revenue to come in at $24.16 billion.
At time of writing, TSLA stock is looking at a trailing week performance of roughly 12% up. In the year so far, shares gained 21% of equity value.
A Vibrant Relationship with TSLA Stock
Though on paper KoGuan’s stated support for the EV leader offers encouragement for TSLA stock, his demeanor presents interpretational challenges. Sending what appears to be mixed messages, retail investors may have difficulty reading between the lines.
For instance, on Jan. 7, KoGuan tweeted, “I am 100% in Tesla bc I believe in Elon Musk and Tesla. But he is killing SH and Tesla. If I knew I wouldn’t invest in Tesla.” SH appears to be an acronym for shareholder, though KoGuan didn’t provide clarification.
On the same tweet, KoGuan mentioned, “Elon invested ≈$200mm but took out $40B, Larry invested $1B, I invested over $3B, I have no choice but to act and speak out.” Finally, he concluded his post with, “I cry out to U for help!”
Notably, a Business Insider article posted on Dec. 16 mentioned that Musk sold nearly $40 billion worth of TSLA stock since November 2021. “That figure dwarfs his electric-vehicle company’s profits and is pretty close to the underlying value of the business,” wrote Insider’s Theron Mohamed.
Further, another Insider report stated that “KoGuan’s comments come as Musk draws scrutiny for his focus on his latest role as chief executive at Twitter, the social media company he acquired in October.”
It’s not the first time KoGuan expressed serious concerns about Musk and how the CEO impacts TSLA stock. Near mid-December, KoGuan tweeted that “Elon abandoned Tesla and Tesla has no working CEO.” Further, he added that “Tesla needs and deserves to have working full time CEO.”
The above comments occurred during rising investor impatience regarding Musk’s handling of Twitter.
Why It Matters
According to Capital.com, earlier this month, “Tesla had announced their Q4 deliveries, which were up 31.5% [year-over-year] and 18.5% [quarter-over-quarter] at 405,000, however, missed expectations of 420,000. Consequently, this marked the second consecutive quarter that Tesla deliveries underwhelmed estimates highlighting that demand for cars has been slowing given the backdrop of supply chain issues and economic uncertainty.”
It’s possible, per the Capital.com analysis, that sentiment became overly negative for TSLA stock. Further, KoGuan’s apparent pivot back to a positive posture aligns with this assessment. Nevertheless, broader economic challenges suggest investors should remain vigilant ahead of Tesla’s all-important financial disclosure.
On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
