Oppenheimer analyst Colin Rusch downgraded Tesla Inc. to perform Monday, citing risks related to Elon Musk’s role running social media platform Twitter. “The combination of Twitter’s unclear cash needs and diminishing options for Mr. Musk to serve those needs amid the broad public backlash driven by inconsistent standards application for Twitter users, notably banning select journalists, is pushing us to the sidelines on TSLA,” Rusch said in a note to clients. “We believe increasing negative sentiment on Twitter could linger long term, limiting its financial performance and become an ongoing overhang on TSLA.” Shares of Tesla are up 3.1% in premarket trades after a majority of respondents in a Twitter poll voted for Musk to step down as head of the company. It’s not yet clear if Musk will abide by his promise to step down based on the poll’s results, though he said he would abide by the wishes of the respondents.
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