‘Shut up, Dan’ — Elon Musk snaps at Tesla bull Dan Ives after he demands board take action against the CEO

• When the Wedbush Securities tech analyst lobbied Tesla’s board to erect guardrails against Elon Musk spending too much time with his political activism, the CEO’s response was immediate and dismissive. The Tesla bull, who believes the $300 stock should be worth twice its price, had previously urged directors to act: “We believe this is a tipping point in the Tesla story.”

If “card-carrying Tesla bull” was a term in the dictionary, a picture of Dan Ives would be next to it. The Wedbush Securities tech analyst never wavers in his conviction the company is the most undervalued AI play in the market. 

In his view, the share ought to trade closer to $620 with Tesla deserving of a $2 trillion market cap—slightly more than double what its currently worth. Nor does Ives tire of explaining that Tesla’s single most important asset driving this projected growth over the next 12 to 18 months is its transformative CEO, Elon Musk. 

So when he called on the company’s board to adopt a carrot-and-stick approach to ensure the entrepreneur invests his limited time in the company rather than in politics, Musk’s response was immediate.

“Shut up, Dan,” the entrepreneur fired back on Tuesday, dismissing Ive’s notion favouring a special board oversight committee. 

On Monday, Tesla closed at $293 a share, its lowest since Musk fell out with President Donald Trump over the latter’s tax cut and spending bill in early June.

The company did not respond to a request from Fortune for comment.

‘You don’t babysit Elon’

Musk’s public castigation of Ives came amid growing concerns Tesla’s CEO will again prioritize activism over business now that he aims to form a third party capable of disrupting the Republican-Democrat duopoly on Capitol Hill. 

His newfound endeavors come at a sensitive time: Tesla has yet to face investors this year, nor has it set a date or agenda for its shareholder meeting. Given the advanced notice needed and the ongoing summer break, it might once again be September before an AGM will be convened. 

Top on the agenda would likely be a new pay package for a CEO who is goading the White House with continued attacks against Trump. 

Shut up, Dan

But Ives plan to create a special oversight committee and link pay to guardrails around his political activism also met with criticism from other Musk supporters. They argue you a CEO like Musk does not clock in like a worker drone. 

“Some people want the Tesla board to micromanage his hours and police his outside activity. This would be a terrible mistake,” wrote Dave Lee, a Tesla stock influencer with over half a million followers on Musk’s X platform. “You don’t babysit Elon”. 

Tipping point reached

Dubbed “Tesla’s biggest cheerleader on Wall Street” by EV motoring site Electrek, Ives often acts as a conduit between his clients in the investment community and the company. 

The Wedbush analyst combines the occasional stern word with positive reinforcement, rewarding the CEO with effusive praise whenever he reacts to external pressure. 

When Musk flew back to Tesla to rally his demoralized troops at an emergency all-hands meeting before returning to Washington, Ives praised the display.

“Leaders lead in times of trouble and crisis…and last night Elon Musk took a major and much needed step forward,” he wrote. “We applaud Musk for ‘reading the room’ and showing important hand holding at this key time for employees and investors.” 

But this week Ives conveyed his clients’ growing frustration over the distraction posed by a potential America Party, calling for the board to form a special oversight committee—even though a core part of any board’s job is providing oversight.

“We believe this is a tipping point in the Tesla story,” Ives said on Tuesday. “We urge the board to act now.” 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com