Tesla Stock Soars on Musk’s $1B Buy & Robotaxi Push

Musk’s Billion-Dollar Vote of Confidence

Tesla (TSLA) shares experienced a significant surge of approximately 7% following a series of high-profile developments that have reignited investor enthusiasm. The primary catalyst was a disclosure from CEO Elon Musk on Monday, September 15, 2025, revealing his first open-market purchase of the company’s stock since February 2020. Musk acquired 2.57 million shares for about $1 billion, a move widely interpreted as a strong vote of confidence in the electric vehicle maker’s future. This purchase, his largest ever by value, increased his ownership stake from approximately 13%.

A Trillion-Dollar Incentive Plan

Adding to the bullish sentiment is the board’s proposal for a new, ambitious long-term incentive package for Musk. The plan, which will be put to a shareholder vote, could grant the CEO an additional 423 million shares, potentially increasing his stake to around 25%. The compensation is tied to a series of monumental milestones to be achieved by 2030, including:

• Increasing Tesla’s market capitalization to as high as $8.5 trillion.
• Deploying one million robotaxis in commercial operation.
• Delivering one million Optimus humanoid robots.

This proposal firmly frames Tesla’s future not just as a car company, but as a leader in artificial intelligence, autonomous driving, and robotics. As noted by digitaltrendstoday.com, this vision is central to the investment thesis for many of the company’s supporters.

Progress on the Road to Autonomy

Tangible progress toward this autonomous future also fueled the stock’s recent rally. Nevada’s Department of Motor Vehicles recently cleared Tesla to begin testing its autonomous vehicles on public roads, an important step in expanding its driverless ride-piloting program beyond its current operations in Austin, Texas. Prominent investor Gary Black highlighted the potential removal of safety monitors from robotaxis in Austin and the Bay Area by the end of the year as another key near-term catalyst that would signal growing confidence in the technology.

A Divided Wall Street and Lingering Headwinds

Despite the recent optimism, Wall Street remains deeply divided on Tesla’s prospects. Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives represents the bullish camp, rating the stock as “Outperform” with a Street-high price target of $500, citing the company’s potential to become a dominant force in the AI and robotics economy. Similarly, CNBC’s Jim Cramer has reasserted his view that Tesla should be valued as a technology company, not just an automaker.

However, the consensus rating among 33 analysts is a “Hold,” with an average price target of $311.11, suggesting a potential 21% downside from current levels. Analysts at Wolfe reiterated a “Peer Perform” rating, though they expressed bullishness on Tesla’s often-overlooked Energy segment, which they estimate could generate $13.2 billion in revenue with a 29% gross margin by 2025.

Investors also face several headwinds. The stock’s recent run-up has pushed its Relative Strength Index (RSI) to 75.6, a level above 70 that technical analysts consider “overbought” and potentially due for a pullback. Furthermore, the company faces challenges from slumping sales and a declining U.S. EV market share, which reportedly fell below 40% for the first time since 2017. With a forward price-to-earnings ratio exceeding 130, valuation remains a significant concern for skeptics.