Jury finds Elon Musk liable for Twitter stock drop during 2022 buyout
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A California jury has ruled that Elon Musk is responsible for the decline in Twitter stock during his 2022 takeover bid, siding with investors who accused him of deliberately driving down the share price.
The verdict followed a trial in federal court in San Francisco, which examined whether Musk’s public comments about the platform influenced the market.
Investors argued that Musk repeatedly criticised Twitter, particularly over the presence of bots and fake accounts, in an effort to secure a better deal.
Musk ultimately completed the acquisition at $54.20 per share, valuing the company at about $44 billion, and later rebranded it as X. However, during the months between April and October 2022, Twitter’s stock experienced sharp volatility, including a drop of up to 20 percent after Musk indicated the deal was “temporarily on hold.”
The jury upheld two of the four fraud claims brought by investors, while rejecting the others. It also found that Musk did not engage in a broader scheme to defraud investors. Jurors calculated the impact of Musk’s statements on the stock price across the period, though the final damages, which could run into billions of dollars, are yet to be determined.
Musk denied wrongdoing throughout the trial, with his legal team arguing that his comments reflected genuine concerns and were not intended to manipulate the market. Following the verdict, his lawyers described the outcome as a “bump in the road” and said they would pursue an appeal.
Lawyers for the investors welcomed the decision, calling it a significant ruling and saying it reinforces that market influence carries accountability.
The case centred on whether Musk’s high-profile social media posts, made to millions of followers, directly affected investor decisions and stock performance during the acquisition process.