Twitter stock soared Monday on a report that Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk nabbed a 9.2% stake in the company for $2.89 billion, according to a securities filing.
The stock purchase comes after Musk, in late March, polled his Twitter followers, asking them if Twitter adheres to the principles of free speech. More than 70% said no.
"Is a new platform needed?" he later tweeted.
Musk continued, "Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy. What should be done?"
Twitter Stock Soars
Twitter stock vaulted 27%, closing at 49.97 on the stock market today. Tesla stock climbed 5.6% to 1,145.45. Meta Platforms rose 4% to 233.89.
Neither Twitter nor Tesla responded to a request for comment.
Musk reported owning almost 73.5 million shares of Twitter, making him the largest shareholder, according to FactSet. The purchase price of $2.89 billion is based on Twitter's closing price on Friday.
"It looks like Elon has his eyes laser set on Twitter," Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note to clients. "We would expect this passive stake as just the start of broader conversations with the Twitter board/management that could ultimately lead to an active stake and a potential more aggressive ownership role of Twitter."
Please follow Brian Deagon on Twitter at @IBD_BDeagon for more on tech stocks, analysis and financial markets.
