Tesla sold shares at the steepest discount it’s ever given investors

Tesla Inc. investors who got in on Thursday’s share sale received the steepest discount the electric car maker has offered in its 10-year history as a public company.

Tesla’s $2-billion secondary offering was priced at $767 per share, 4.6% below Thursday’s closing price. That discount is over 10 times larger than Tesla’s last secondary offering in May, and quintuples the average discount given across its seven prior share sales.

Tesla’s shares closed at $800.03 on Friday, down 0.5%.

The 91% run-up this year might have contributed to the more buyer-friendly pricing terms, not to mention fresh regulatory scrutiny. But Elon Musk probably isn’t losing any sleep over the matter, as the price per share was still more than double any of the company’s prior equity raises.

Six of Tesla’s previous secondary offerings -- conducted between 2011 and 2019 -- were priced at discounts below 1%. The bullish bidding helped Tesla fuel a decade of unparalleled price appreciation.