Two institutional investors, Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC and Surience Private Wealth LLC, significantly cut their stakes in Tesla during the third quarter, according to recent SEC filings. Zevenbergen sold 100,876 shares, reducing its position by 10.5%, while Surience divested 5,018 shares, slashing its holding by 52.4%. These moves come amid recent insider sales and mixed analyst sentiments on the electric vehicle maker.
Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC lowered its position in Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) by 10.5% in the third quarter, selling 100,876 shares and retaining 862,697 shares valued at approximately $383.7 million as of the end of the period. This makes Tesla about 7.5% of Zevenbergen's portfolio, its second-largest holding. Separately, Surience Private Wealth LLC decreased its stake by 52.4%, offloading 5,018 shares and holding 4,563 shares worth $2.03 million, representing 1.9% of its assets and its 15th biggest position.
These reductions follow notable insider transactions at Tesla. On December 8, Chief Financial Officer Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,637 shares at an average price of $443.93, totaling $1,170,643.41, leaving him with 13,757 shares valued at $6.1 million—a 16.09% decrease in his position. The next day, December 9, Director Kimbal Musk sold 56,820 shares at $450.66 each, for $25.6 million, reducing his direct ownership by 3.92% to 1,391,615 shares worth $627.1 million. Insiders collectively own 19.9% of Tesla's stock.
Tesla's shares opened at $481.20 on the most recent Friday reported, with a market capitalization of $1.6 trillion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 320.8. The company beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter on October 23, reporting $0.50 per share against a consensus of $0.48 and revenue of $28.10 billion versus $24.98 billion expected, up 11.6% year-over-year. However, analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" rating with an average price target of $404.14. Recent upgrades include Deutsche Bank's increase to $500 with a "buy" rating, while others like Barclays held at "neutral" with $350.
Broader context includes positive developments like Tesla's $1.2 billion investment in German battery production and accelerating robotaxi testing, offset by regulatory pressures on autonomous driving features and softening U.S. vehicle sales. Institutional investors own 66.2% of Tesla's shares overall.
