Cars and Drivers

Daimler Sells Stake in Tesla

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Courtesy of Tesla Motors
In an announcement released after U.S. markets closed on Tuesday, Daimler AG, Germany-based maker of Mercedes-Benz and Daimler cars and trucks and smart cars, said it was “reorganizing its cooperation with Tesla Motors Inc.” (NASDAQ: TSLA). The German company sold its 4.3% stake in Tesla less than a year after Daimler hedged its Tesla holdings for three years.

Because Daimler plans to continue its partnership with Tesla on automotive projects, the sales looks like a bit of profit taking. At today’s closing stock price Tesla’s market cap was $29.33 billion, making Daimler’s stake worth about $1.26 billion. Daimler said it expects a “cash inflow” of around $780 million from the stock sale.

Tesla will continue to supply electric drive units to Daimler for its Mercedes B-class models and the company,s smart for two electric drive mini-car. The chairman of Daimler’s board of management said, “Our partnership with Tesla is very successful and will be continued.”

Tesla shares have dropped about 1% in Tuesday’s after-hours session to $233.00 from a closing price of $235.34, up 2.11% on the day. The stock’s 52-week range is $116.10 to $291.42.

ALSO READ: Michigan Governor Outlaws Tesla Sales

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