Tesla CEO Elon Musk sold about $8.5 billion worth of shares in the American electric car maker just days after agreeing to buy Twitter. The sale of the shares is likely to help Musk finance his planned $44 billion buyout of the social media platform.
Documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission show that Musk sold a total of 9.6 million Tesla shares this week.
Tesla shares plummeted earlier this week amid speculation that Musk would sell part of his stake in the automaker to fund a deal.
He tweeted Thursday night that he no longer plans to sell his shares in the electric car maker.
Tesla shares are down about 20% after Musk revealed earlier this month that he bought a 9.2% stake in Twitter.
On Tuesday, more than $125 billion was devalued from the market value of the automaker's shares after the social media company's board accepted its takeover bid.
Mr. Musk is the richest man in the world, worth nearly $250 billion, largely thanks to his stake in Tesla.
He also owns over 40% of the $100 billion rocket company SpaceX.
