Lewis Krauskopf, Noel Randewich

NEW YORK, Reuters – If Elon Musk chooses to sell some of his Tesla stock (NASDAQ:) Inc stake), he’ll be able to capitalize on a huge rally that made Tesla one of the most valued companies in the world.

Tesla Chief asked his followers via Twitter (NYSE.) on Saturday whether he would sell 10% of Tesla’s stake. Close to 58% supported such an offer, which led the stock’s fall of 4.9% upon Monday’s resumption.

After a surge in Tesla shares over recent weeks, Musk polled his followers on Twitter to gauge their opinions. This was a strong but volatile run for Tesla stock since its addition in the last year.

In the three-months to date, Tesla trading has averaged $19 million per day, which is higher than any U.S. business, according Refinitiv data.

Take a look at Tesla shares from a closer angle:

Tesla shares rose in recent weeks after falling during the first half 2021. Since Oct. 20, the stock has gained some 34%, with the S&P 500 up 3.6% over that time, a move that has pushed the electric-car maker’s market value over $1 trillion.

With those recent gains, Tesla shares have now surged 67% since the stock joined the S&P 500 in late December, versus a 27% gain for the benchmark index over that time.

(For graphic on Tesla shares since joining S&P 500 – https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-STOCKS/TESLA/byvrjkrzwve/chart.png)

Tesla accounts for about 2.5% of the S&P 500’s $4 trillion market capitalization. This compares with 1.8% in December 2020, when Tesla joined S&P 500.

(For graphic on Tesla in the S&P 500 – https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/egpbkamzzvq/Pasted%20image%201636404344233.png)

In recent months Tesla’s stock price has declined as analysts make higher earnings predictions. The average analyst sees Tesla’s 2022 earnings per Share at $7.92. That is up from the $5.50 average in February.

However, Tesla’s PE valuation remains sky-high, with the stock now trading at 150-times future earnings, compared to 21 times for the S&P 500.

(For graphic on Tesla’s forward P/E – https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/dwvkreegrpm/Pasted%20image%201636404441389.png)

This year, Tesla stock has rallied so short-term bets have fallen.

S3 Partners analytics company said Monday that 29.5million Tesla shares were shorted, a decrease of 60.6 million from the beginning of January. As a percentage, the short position in Tesla is now 3.6% (from 8% at its beginning of this year).

Tesla’s short-interest (a measure of stock price and the number of shares that were being shorted) was nearly $36.1 billion. It is larger than any other stock according to S3.

(For graphic on Bets against Tesla shares fall – https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-STOCKS/TESLA/zjvqkwwkjvx/chart.png)

Tesla shares, like those of other automobile companies, have experienced big swings in this year’s market as the sector struggles to cope with the worldwide supply crisis and the effects of the pandemic coronavirus. Tesla’s stock has gained or lost 2% in a session 99 times so far in 2021, compared to 79 times for Ford Motor (NYSE:) and just five times for the S&P 500.

(For graphic on A volatile year for U.S. car makers – https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-STOCKS/TESLA/gdpzydwxjvw/chart.png)