Elon Musk Asks Twitter Followers about Selling Tesla Stock
2021-11-09
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1Elon Musk, the founder of the electric car company Tesla, recently asked people on Twitter if he should sell billions of dollars in company stock.
2Musk is one of the world's richest people, so the request was unusual.
3He asked his millions of Twitter followers whether he should sell 10 percent of his stock in the company.
4That amount might be worth $20 billion or more.
5As of last summer, Musk owned about 170 million shares of Tesla.
6On Saturday, Musk placed a poll on Twitter, asking if he should sell the stock.
7About 3.5 million people voted, and nearly 58 percent said he should.
8"I was prepared to accept either outcome," Musk said.
9On Monday, the shares of Tesla stock dropped a small amount.
10David Madden is a stock market expert in London.
11He said he did not believe the "dip" would last long.
12"Tesla has had such a phenomenal record of bouncing back from these sort of selloffs," he said.
13Musk said he understands people are concerned that very rich people avoid paying taxes.
14For example, many people who own millions of shares in a company like Musk does, do not sell their shares when they need money.
15Instead, they get loans from banks based on the value of the stock.
16If they do sell shares of stock, they get taxed, so they get the loans to buy something like a new home.
17Stock is not money.
18It is an ownership share in a company.
19Investors exchange stock for money by selling it on a market.
20People who follow Musk's finances and company documents available to the public know that the businessman has a decision to make by next year.
21Until August 13, 2022, Musk will be able to buy more than 22 million shares of Tesla stock at a price of just over $6 each.
22Right now, Tesla stock sells for more than $1,000 per share.
23Musk says he is paid in what are known as stock options instead of money.
24An option is a financial agreement.
25It permits the owner of the option to trade stock at a set price for a set period of time.
26After that time period ends, the option is worth nothing.
27However, if he goes through with the option, he would have to pay a lot in taxes on the deal.
28Bryan Springmeyer is a lawyer in San Francisco.
29He said it is unlikely Musk would take a loan to pay his taxes, so he thinks Musk will buy the shares and then sell some of them.
30United States lawmakers have been thinking about ways to get very rich people to pay more taxes.
31They are discussing a plan to tax people who have large amounts of stock whether they have sold the shares or not.
32Musk criticized the idea, saying: "Eventually, they run out of other people's money and then they come for you."
33Ron Wyden is a U.S. Senator from Oregon.
34 He leads the Senate Finance Committee.
35Soon after Musk's announcement, he said, "It's time for the Billionaires Income Tax."
36I'm Dan Friedell.
1Elon Musk, the founder of the electric car company Tesla, recently asked people on Twitter if he should sell billions of dollars in company stock. 2Musk is one of the world's richest people, so the request was unusual. 3He asked his millions of Twitter followers whether he should sell 10 percent of his stock in the company. That amount might be worth $20 billion or more. As of last summer, Musk owned about 170 million shares of Tesla. 4On Saturday, Musk placed a poll on Twitter, asking if he should sell the stock. About 3.5 million people voted, and nearly 58 percent said he should. "I was prepared to accept either outcome," Musk said. 5On Monday, the shares of Tesla stock dropped a small amount. David Madden is a stock market expert in London. He said he did not believe the "dip" would last long. "Tesla has had such a phenomenal record of bouncing back from these sort of selloffs," he said. 6Musk said he understands people are concerned that very rich people avoid paying taxes. For example, many people who own millions of shares in a company like Musk does, do not sell their shares when they need money. Instead, they get loans from banks based on the value of the stock. 7If they do sell shares of stock, they get taxed, so they get the loans to buy something like a new home. Stock is not money. It is an ownership share in a company. Investors exchange stock for money by selling it on a market. 8People who follow Musk's finances and company documents available to the public know that the businessman has a decision to make by next year. 9Until August 13, 2022, Musk will be able to buy more than 22 million shares of Tesla stock at a price of just over $6 each. Right now, Tesla stock sells for more than $1,000 per share. 10Musk says he is paid in what are known as stock options instead of money. An option is a financial agreement. It permits the owner of the option to trade stock at a set price for a set period of time. After that time period ends, the option is worth nothing. 11However, if he goes through with the option, he would have to pay a lot in taxes on the deal. 12Bryan Springmeyer is a lawyer in San Francisco. He said it is unlikely Musk would take a loan to pay his taxes, so he thinks Musk will buy the shares and then sell some of them. 13United States lawmakers have been thinking about ways to get very rich people to pay more taxes. They are discussing a plan to tax people who have large amounts of stock whether they have sold the shares or not. 14Musk criticized the idea, saying: "Eventually, they run out of other people's money and then they come for you." 15Ron Wyden is a U.S. Senator from Oregon. He leads the Senate Finance Committee. Soon after Musk's announcement, he said, "It's time for the Billionaires Income Tax." 16I'm Dan Friedell. 17Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report Reuters. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 18What do you think of the plan to tax very wealthy people? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 19_____________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21poll - n. an activity in which people are asked a question or a series of questions in order to get information about what they think (often informally online) 22dip - n. a drop, a reduction 23phenomenal - adj. very good or great : unusual in a way that is very impressive 24option - n. (financial) a right that is given by a company to an employee that lets the employee buy stock in the company usually for a price that is lower than the normal price for a certain period of time