Tesla stock has continued to climb higher since mid-march, with the stock trading around $783 per share, a more than 100% increase from the March lows. More importantly, however, the stock has reached a milestone that has made Elon Musk a very wealthy man and given some green ETFs a boost as well.

In 2018, Tesla’s board and shareholders authorized a compensation plan for Musk, enabling the entrepreneur to garner options valued at potentially more than $55 billion over the next 10 years. Musk was told he would earn the first tranche of at least $346 million in options if Tesla’s market capitalization hits and stays at $100 billion.

The SEC necessitates that companies annually file the total compensation of their chief executives. In Tesla’s 2019 filing, the company reported that Musk “made” $2.3 billion in 2018 as a result of the compensation plan.

Well, the electric automaker’s market value earlier this week reached the threshold needed for Musk to gather the 1.69 million stock options he can exercise at $350.02 apiece, giving them a value of more than $700 million. Accomplishing all of the incredulous targets that were detailed in the pay package could yield Musk more than $50 billion, according to Tesla’s estimates.

Despite the enormous wealth he has amassed, Musk, who is no stranger to controversy, has continued to express desires to shed his material possessions.

Musk, 48, listed two of his California houses for sale Sunday, hoping for a combined $39.5 million for the Bel Air properties. He vowed to sell the houses and most of his possessions in a burst of May 1 tweets in which he also stated he believed Tesla’s stock price was too high, driving the stock into a free-fall.

 

In an interview with Joe Rogan recently, Musk detailed his promise to sell his homes and most of his possessions, explaining to the comedian that people are too focused on bashing billionaires, and have a myopic view of them as a result.
“Possessions kind of weigh you down,” the chief executive officer of Tesla Inc. said on the “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast. “They’re kind of an attack vector, you know? People say, ‘Hey, billionaire, you’ve got all this stuff.’ Well, now I don’t have stuff. Now, what are you going to do?”
Green ETFs have benefited from the move higher in Tesla as well, with funds like the First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Green Energy Index Fund (QCLN) rallying more than 40% since March, and up 1.5% Thursday. The fund invests in companies that are engaged in a variety of different activities related to several green energy sub-sectors, including companies focused on biofuels, solar energy, and advanced batteries (among others).
For investors looking for ETFs to play Tesla, the  ARK Industrial Innovation ETF (NYSEArca: ARKQ), VanEck Vectors Low Carbon Energy ETF (NYSEArca: SMOG), and the aforementioned First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Green Energy Index Fund (NasdaqGM: QCLN) all have healthy allocations of the stock.

For more market trends, visit  ETF Trends.

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