- Elon Musk-owned EV maker Tesla saw its stock soar 80% in 2024, with most gains made after November election.
- While investors hoped Musk's association with Trump would boost the company, sales and stock price are down since inauguration.
- Some industry analysts say Musk's political involvement is to blame, others that it's thanks to Tesla falling behind on new model releases.
The stock value of Elon Musk-owned electric vehicle maker Tesla had an incredible ride in 2024, gaining over 80% over the course of the year, with most of that price ascension realized after President Donald Trump secured his reelection bid on Nov. 6.
Industry watchers say that post-election bump was driven in large part by investor confidence that Musk’s massive financial support of Trump, with campaign contributions reportedly north of $270 million, and subsequent appointment to lead out on the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, would bode well for Tesla’s future performance as the CEO joined the president’s inner circle.
Tesla’s financial tale, however, has taken a turn since Trump took the oath of office with Tesla stock down over 17% since Jan. 21, as of midday Friday. Just weeks before the inauguration, Tesla reported the first full-year drop in global sales in its history as a public company, according to a report from CNN.
While Tesla saw a fourth quarter sales increase of around 2%, the EV maker’s 2024 annual sales volume of 1.8 million vehicles fell 1% short of its overall sales in 2023.
Increased competition from both international and domestic electric vehicle manufacturers has eaten into Tesla’s dominance, though it remained the world’s top EV seller in 2024, edging out China’s BYD by 24,000 vehicles last year.
Highlighting Tesla’s first reported backslide in annual sales were glowing reports from U.S. automakers, released just a day later, that showed some of the highest sales numbers in years.
On Jan. 3, Ford and GM reported their best sales since 2019, with overall new vehicle sales in the U.S. expected to hit 16 million for 2024, the best annual volume since domestic automakers sold a collective 17 million vehicles in 2019.
GM held its spot as the top-selling brand in the U.S. in 2024, reporting 2.7 million vehicles sold last year, up 4.3% from 2023. GM sold 2.9 million vehicles in 2019.
Ford held down the No. 3 spot on the U.S. list with sales of 2.08 million vehicles in 2024, up from just under 2 million in 2023. In 2019, Ford reported annual sales of 2.42 million vehicles in the U.S.
Sales increases for both manufacturers, according to their reports, were bolstered by solid growth in electric vehicle sales.
Tesla sales down big to start 2025
Tesla’s vehicle sales figures are off to a rocky start so far in 2025, and particularly across Europe where year-over-year sales in January decreased in the U.K., France, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Denmark and Portugal, according to a Feb. 7 report by NASDAQ analysts. The least significant decrease of all of these countries was the U.K., where sales decreased by 18.2%. The average decrease in sales between all of the countries listed was 47.5% and Tesla saw its most significant January sales decrease in Spain, where it plummeted by 75.4%.
EV news site Electrek notes most industry watchers agree that the two driving forces behind declining Tesla sales are Musk’s political involvement and the company’s efforts to transition Model Y production to a new design, a move that is affecting production and sales.
Some analysts point to Musk’s close personal association with the Tesla brand as a plus for those who view his actions outside the company as positive, but it’s also one that can have adverse consequences if those activities are viewed by potential customers in a negative light.
“Tesla has played a pivotal role in accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles, but our findings show that Elon Musk’s personal involvement in Tesla’s brand appears to be polarizing, pushing many buyers to look elsewhere,” said Ginny Buckley, chief executive of Electrifying.com, per a Newsweek report.
But other industry watchers say the lull in Tesla vehicle sales volumes are a reflection of the company lagging behind on releasing new vehicle models. Aside from the Cybertruck, which became available in 2023, Tesla hasn’t brought a new model to market since the Model Y crossover SUV in 2020.
“Tesla’s problems are likely not to do with British motorists' perceptions of Elon Musk,” NewAutoMotive chief executive Ben Nelmes told market intelligence outlet Argus Media, per Newsweek, "and more to do with the fact that Tesla hasn’t released a new car since the Model Y, while its competitors have been playing catch-up."
While Tesla sales volumes in Europe saw some of the biggest year-over-year declines in January, sales also declined in Australia and China, the world’s largest electric vehicle market in terms of both sales and the number of EVs on the road. Tesla sales figures for total vehicles sold in the U.S. last month are not yet available.