Elon Musk Sells More Tesla Stock: Why Twitter Shares Are Rising Today

Twitter Inc TWTR shares are trading higher Wednesday after Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk sold shares of the electric vehicle company, noting that the funds could be used for a potential Twitter deal. 

According to several SEC filings, Musk sold nearly $7 billion worth of Tesla stock between Aug. 5 and Aug. 9. The Tesla CEO said he sold the shares to avoid a potential emergency sale.

"In the (hopefully unlikely) event that Twitter forces this deal to close *and* some equity partners don’t come through, it is important to avoid an emergency sale of Tesla stock," Musk said via tweet on Tuesday.

Twitter shares have been volatile since negotiations between the social media company and Musk commenced. The two parties remain in a legal battle centered around the number of bots or spam accounts on the Twitter platform. 

Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives maintained Twitter with a Neutral rating and raised the price target from $30 to $50 following Musk's Tesla stock sale.

Related Link: Analysts Bet On Twitter Deal Getting Done After Elon Musk Goes On Another Tesla Stock Selling Spree

TWTR Price Action: Twitter has a 52-week high of $54.57 and a 52-week low of $31.30.

The stock was up 3.78% at $44.45 at press time, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo: Steve Jurvetson from Flickr.