Tesla stock is on course for its second worst month ever.
Investors are looking for things than can turn the tide and looking for leadership from CEO Elon Musk.
Shares of the electric vehicle maker were edging up 0.6% in premarket trading at $283.72, while S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were both rising about 0.3%.
Regardless of how Friday turns out, February has been a terrible month for the stock. Coming into Friday trading, Tesla stock had dropped 14 of the 19 trading days in the month, including the past six straight. Tesla stock was down 30%, putting shares on pace for their second-worst month ever. Shares dropped about 37% in December 2022.
There is a connection between the 2022 and 2025 performance. December 2022 was just after Musk closed on his acquisition of social-media platform Twitter, which he renamed X. Then, investors were worried about Musk’s time management and if he could add another business to his quiver without performance at his car company suffering.
Fears subsided and Tesla stock rallied 100%.
Now investors see Musk almost exclusively in Washington, D.C. and investors are, again, worried about time management. They are also concerned about whether the CEO’s close association with President Donald Trump has turned off Tesla’s traditional buyers—politically left-leaning consumers looking to go green.
Distraction risks are piling up, said Wedbush analyst Dan Ives. “Investors have patience but this is starting to tip the scale and it’s weighing on shares along with brand issues related to Musk/Tesla,” he added. “Perception becomes reality on Wall Street.”
Investors would like Musk to try to change the perception.
Self-driving cars will be key. Tesla plans to launch an autonomous robotaxi service in 2025. Bloomberg reported Thursday that Tesla has applied for a permit to operate self-driving cars in California.
Exactly what Tesla has applied for isn’t clear. The company already holds a permit to test self-driving cars with a safety driver present. And th California Department of Motor Vehicles said there hasn’t been any application made for a self-driving license. Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment about its permitting activities in the state.
Still, going through some regulatory processes in California is just about right on schedule if Tesla wants to start the service sometime this year.
Investors hope they see self-driving Teslas on roads sooner than later.
Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com