synopsis

The billionaire CEO of the electric vehicle maker said his time allocation at DOGE “will drop significantly,” while adding that he will continue to work a day or two per week for “as long as it is useful.”

Tesla Inc. stock ripped more than 8% on Wednesday morning after CEO Elon Musk announced that he will take a step back from his responsibilities at the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Musk made the announcement during a post-earnings call with analysts following Tesla’s disappointing first-quarter results.

The billionaire CEO of the electric vehicle maker said his time allocation at DOGE “will drop significantly,” while adding that he will continue to work a day or two per week for “as long as it is useful.”

"But starting next month, I will be allocating far more of my time to Tesla now that the major work of establishing the Department of Government Efficiency is done,” he said.

These comments come after Tesla reported a massive 71% drop year-on-year (YoY) in its profit to $0.27 per share, while revenue declined 9% to $19.34 billion.

Both earnings and revenue missed Wall Street estimates of $0.43 and $21.34 billion, respectively.

A recent report stated that the Tesla stock is currently the most profitable short in the world – short sellers are reportedly sitting atop gains of $11.5 billion year-to-date.

Tech bull Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities praised Musk’s decision in a post on social media platform X, saying that the Street was “craving” it.

“Musk recommitting as CEO as [sic] Tesla and basically leaving his DOGE role over the next month is the biggest and best possible news Tesla investors could have heard last night,” he said.

Despite Tesla’s Q1 miss, Ives expressed optimism about the company’s future, raising the price target for the stock to $350. This implies an upside of 42% from current levels.

Tesla’s stock is down 39% year-to-date.

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