Stakeholders, state officials claim that Elon Musk’s damage to Tesla are caused

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Tuesday that his role in the White House office will be secondary when he spends more time on the EV company.

Certain major stakeholders from Tesla and state officials criticizing business leaders told Business Insider that they were still affected.

“The disappointing income of the company was proof that its lack of concentration indeed harmed the company and definitively damaged the value of the brand of Tesla,” said Michael Rripichs, treasurer of the State of Illinois on Wednesday. “It is useful to hear that Mr. Musk could in fact do his job as the Tesla’s executive, but we cannot miss the fact that he has caused long -term damage to this company.”

Rries is one of the seven State treasurers who sent a letter on April 17, demanding that the chairman of the board of directors of Tesla, Robyn Denholm, ensures that Musk enshrines “a sufficient time to the company”, taking into account the recent performance of Tesla.

Depending on the state, treasurers can participate in the management of their state pension funds, which may contain positions in Tesla.

“The success or the setbacks of the company have important implications for workers, regional industries and innovation ecosystems in our states,” said the letter, which was signed by seven state treasurers and the Californian controller.

Tesla, Musk and Denholm did not immediately respond to a request for comments.

They are not the only major stakeholders to have expressed their concern.

Even before his role with the Doge Office, some institutional shareholders had urged Musk to pay more attention to Tesla because they feared that the general manager juggles too many hats with his acquisition of Twitter.

In May of last year, a group of institutional shareholders submitted a letter to the SEC demanding that Musk and the board of directors of Tesla remain more vigilant in the long -term growth of the company.

These criticisms have only increased since then.

The retail merchants and even the most optimistic analysts urged Musk to stay on the right track while Tesla continued to miss expectations.

Tesla reported in its last profits from the first quarter that total turnover had dropped 9% compared to the same period last year. The company’s stock fell 41% Wednesday of its peak in January.

Business Insider contacted the state treasurers who signed the letter of April 17 and several institutional shareholders who previously expressed concerns about Tesla’s governance.

Here’s what they said.

Brad Lander, New York controller

The New York controller oversees the city’s five public retirement funds and has expressed reluctance to Musk’s leadership.

Last year, he joined the coalition of shareholders who called to vote against the salary package of several billion dollars of musk. In April, Lander urged the Adams administration and the New York law department to continue a securities trial against Tesla.

“Elon Musk’s commitment is far too little, too late,” Bi Oluwatona Campbell, spokesperson for the controller, told Bi Oluwatona. “Tesla shareholders deserve a full -time CEO dedicated to the management of the company, and not to a part -time lackey for an authoritarian climate ship. Musk must be responsible before the shareholders of Tesla and the millions of current and future customers who believe in a green transition.”

The controller’s office said in April that the city’s five public retirement systems held more than 3 million Tesla shares worth around 1.26 billion dollars on December 31, 2024. On March 28, shares were worth $ 831 million, according to the office.

Dave Young, treasurer of the state of Colorado

Young told Bi in an interview that Tuesday’s revenues have shown that the company underperforming expectations. He said he was concerned about Musk’s insistence to stay on Doge for at least the rest of the month.

“I think it is a random leadership and it endangers the market and the stability of the government at the same time,” said Young, one of the treasurers of the state that signed the letter of April 17.

Young added that Musk should “back now” from the White House office. He said that he was only talking about the state treasurer as the state treasurer and not as the state’s trustee.

Employees of the State of Colorado could have a certain exposure to Tesla, because the withdrawal association of public employees of the State (PERA) offers an action fund with large capitalization with large American companies, including 2.3% of its assets in Tesla.

Pera reports in December 2024 showed that the fund held around $ 2.8 billion in management, which means that the Fund’s position in Tesla could be around $ 64.4 million on Wednesday.

Deborah Goldberg, treasurer of the state of the Massachusetts

“Tesla’s yesterday calls yesterday offered many promises, but what the American people need is performance,” said Goldberg, who signed the letter of April 17, in a statement to Bi. “It is time for the board of directors to intensify and ensure that this company delivers and achieves its full potential. We will monitor significant progress over time, not just ambitious words.”

Goldberg sits on the board of directors of nine members of the Massachusetts Reserve Reserve Investment Management, which oversees state retirement services. A spokesperson told BI that the retirement trust trust fund had about $ 315 million in passive exhibitions in Tesla, taking into account its assets in the S&P 500.

Erick Russell, treasurer of the state of Connecticut

Russell signed the letter of April 17 and, as the main trustee of retirement plans and state trustees, told Bi, “Musk has put the employees, customers and investors of Tesla at financial risks.”

“Although we are cautiously optimistic about the positive response of the market to Elon Musk’s engagement to refocus on his day work, we expect concrete actions and ultimately judge him on performance. The reputation damage he caused by Tesla could never be completely repaired, and his efforts to change the blame on the demonstrators and refound his role in the field of customers of fident responsibility.”

A spokesperson for the Treasurer Bureau said Tesla represents about $ 230 million in passive retirement plans and state trustee funds, which have around 60 billion dollars in management.

Joakim Embu, KLP portfolio manager

KLP, a retirement company based in Norway which holds around 900,000 Tesla shares, was one of the institutional shareholders who criticized the Musk’s remuneration pack.

In a declaration in BI, Embu said that Musk may have violated his trustee obligation as CEO of Tesla by prioritizing personal interests on the best interests of the company.

“His involvement with DOGE seems to offer little strategic value to Tesla, because her association with the Trump administration has undoubtedly affected the brand image and the Tesla sales prospects,” he said.

Michael Rries, treasurer of the state of Illinois

Rritichs, who joined the group of state treasurers criticizing Tesla’s management in the letter of April 17, told Bi that he was “happy” that Musk has committed to spend more time in his business and is looking forward to hearing more details to repair the “damage he caused”.

“Tesla’s winnings on Tesla’s earnings testified to what is happening when a CEO does not have an eye on the ball,” he said in an email, adding that “we can call the last three months what it is-a failure of Elon Musk to duty and to the care that all shareholders expect from any CEO.”

A spokesperson for the Bureau de Rries said that the treasurer did not manage the sprawling network of state pension funds.

Mike Pellicciotti, Washington treasurer

Pellicciotti told Bi in a press release that “Tesla’s board of directors should have seriously suffered the serious damage that their CEO makes the brand’s performance, brand and engagement to provide the necessary supply and innovation on the electric vehicle market”.

“If Musk’s plan is to be a part-time and part-time part-time CEO, I am far from being convinced that there is a path to recovery, and even less success, in both efforts,” he said.

As a treasurer, Pellicciotti is a member of the Washington State Investment Board, which manages public state and confidence public funds. However, he does not speak on behalf of the board of directors.

As of December 31, the 10 main WSIB titles included Tesla at 1% of the $ 45 billion in management, or around $ 450 million.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American teachers’ federation

In February, the American teachers’ federation – a group of trustees who occupy public pension funds occupying the actions on Tesla’s actions – urged the main asset managers like Blackrock and Vanguard to review their investments in the electric vehicle company, while the title plunged earlier this year.

The group said that pension funds amount to approximately 4 billions of dollars, including a “material amount” invested in Tesla shares.

In a press release in BI, Weingarten said that Tesla’s first quarter’s first quarter revenues were “disastrous” but expected.

“During the calling for results, Elon Musk rejected the problems he faced with his business and said that real autonomy was still on our doorstep,” said Weingarten. “Tesla continues to be a huge risk for pension portfolios and retirement security. What will Tesla’s board of directors do to remedy it?”