A group of New York state senators has asked Thomas P. DiNapoli, the state comptroller and sole trustee of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, Albany, to divest Tesla shares owned by the $273.4 billion pension fund, blaming CEO Elon Musk for the company's sinking stock price.
“Given Tesla’s ongoing volatility and significant profit decline, we should seriously evaluate the risks of continued investment and its impact on the pension fund’s stability,” said Democratic state Sen. Patricia Fahy, the lead author among 23 state senators, in a news release March 11.
“Beginning to responsibly divest from Tesla is a prudent step to protect the long-term stability of the fund and ensure that we are making responsible financial decisions on behalf of New York’s public employees and retirees and financial future,” Fahy said.
“The performance and governance of this investment may now pose a risk to the overall financial health of the overall pension fund especially while Elon Musk remains CEO,” the senators’ letter said.
According to SEC documents, the New York pension fund owned $1.42 billion worth of Tesla common stock as of Dec. 31.
"Comptroller DiNapoli appreciates Senator Fahy’s concerns and her highlighting of his ongoing efforts to improve Tesla’s corporate governance,” DiNapoli wrote in a March 11 response.
“As a long-term investor, the (Common Retirement) Fund remains committed to monitoring risk to our investments and engaging portfolio companies, including Tesla, to preserve and enhance the long-term value of our investments on behalf of our members,” he wrote.
