It comes after she offloaded millions last month
A Tesla chairwoman who has been chair of the board since 2018 has sold major stock in the company.
Tesla seems to be witnessing some big moves behind the scenes, with several high-profile figures making major financial decisions. Just days after Kimbal Musk unloaded a staggering $28 million worth of stock, Tesla chairwoman Robyn Denholm has followed suit, selling an eye-watering $33 million in stock.
This comes at a time when Tesla is facing growing controversy surrounding Elon Musk’s influence in government and calls for a boycott of the electric vehicle giant. Meanwhile, Tesla’s stock market performance has been volatile, with Bloomberg reporting a sharp slump in sales in Europe. Despite a 37% surge in EV sales across the EU, Tesla has seen a 45% dip. Since December 2024, Musk has lost over $100 billion, though he’s still holding onto his title as the world’s richest man with $354.8 billion.
Denholm, who has served as Tesla’s chairwoman since 2018, is one of the few figures with oversight over Musk. Her recent $33 million stock sale—confirmed by a March 3 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission—adds to her February 2025 sale of 112,390 shares, totaling around $43.2 million in proceeds. Additionally, Denholm exercised stock options to purchase 112,390 shares at $24.73 each, totaling $2.78 million. After these transactions, she retains direct ownership of 85,000 Tesla shares.
These moves come on the heels of Tesla’s Chief Financial Officer, Vaibhav Taneja, selling 7,000 shares worth $2.8 million in February 2025. While these sales are part of a pre-established trading plan, they add to growing questions about the company’s future amid fluctuating stock performance and leadership shifts.
At the beginning of 2025, Robyn Denholm and other Tesla directors reached a settlement agreement worth up to $919 million, following court approval. This settlement, aimed at resolving a shareholder complaint, requires the board members to return some of their compensation. The complaint alleged that the board had overcompensated themselves during Tesla’s highly profitable years from 2017 to 2020.
Denholm has had her share of controversies, especially surrounding Elon Musk’s $56 million pay package scandal. She admitted that her tenure as Tesla’s chairwoman has earned her a hefty $280 million. While Tesla’s stock has surged by 38.29% over the past year, it has recently taken a significant dive, dropping 30.75% in the last month. Given that this all unfolds just after former President Donald Trump’s return to office, critics are quick to draw connections.
There have also been growing concerns about the close ties between Tesla’s board members and the world’s richest man, Elon Musk. With both Kimbal Musk, Elon’s brother, and now Denholm offloading millions of dollars worth of shares, it’s bound to create waves in the stock market, leaving many investors and analysts on edge.
