'Ridiculous,' 'Wacktivism:' Cathie Wood, Elon Musk React To Tesla's Removal From S&P 500 ESG Index

Popular money manager and Tesla Inc TSLA bull Cathie Wood on Wednesday slammed the move to boot the EV maker from the S&P 500's ESG Index after its billionaire CEO Elon Musk called environment, social & governance (ESG) ratings a "scam."

What Happened: The world’s richest man wrote the move is “a clear case of wacktivism" after Tesla lost its spot on the ESG Index, as the EV maker's rank slipped against its global peers. 

Wackitivism is likely a portmanteau of wacky and activist, and can be described as something or someone related to “insane protest campaigns.”

Interestingly, Musk was replying to Wood’s post in which the money manager called the move “ridiculous,” and that it was “Not worthy of any other response.”

The world’s richest man first agreed with Wood but still went on to expand on his previous tweet.

The 66-year-old money manager’s tweet also caught the attention of Tesla-bear and analyst Gordon Johnson who replied with a GIF.

Why It Matters: Musk on Wednesday sent out numerous tweets in response to Tesla losing its spot on the ESG index, which he said had been “weaponized by phony social justice warriors." 

Musk said Tesla was doing more for the environment than any other company. He took a similar stance while confronting Bill Gates last month over the latter's short position against Tesla.

Exxon Mobil Corp XOM, he wrote, is “rated among the top ten, best in the world for environment, social & governance (ESG) by S&P 500, while Tesla didn’t make the list!”

Price Action: Tesla closed 6.8% lower at $709.8 on Wednesday and is down 40.8% year-to-date.

Photo courtesy: Steve Jurvetson on Flickr and Ark Investment Management