Tesla Stock Hits a Fresh Record High as SEC Filings Spotlight Institutional Buying

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) grabbed headlines on December 16, 2025 after its shares surged to a new record high around $490, extending a rally that has been fueled by growing investor focus on robotaxis, self-driving software, AI, and robotics. ^[1]

But the stock’s move didn’t happen in a vacuum. The day’s news flow combined three powerful narratives that Google Discover readers have been tracking closely:

a wave of institutional ownership updates disclosed through recent SEC filings,
fresh debate over Tesla’s autonomous driving trajectory, and
a significant new corporate commitment to battery-cell production in Europe, anchored at Gigafactory Berlin. ^[2]

Below is what’s driving the conversation—and what these developments could mean for Tesla’s next chapter.

A new round of SEC filings shows institutions adjusting Tesla exposure

Multiple SEC filing-driven updates circulated around the market this week, pointing to institutional investors adding, initiating, or reducing Tesla positions. It’s crucial context for a stock where institutions and hedge funds reportedly account for a large share of ownership. ^[3]

WT Wealth Management: stake increased sharply in the latest filing snapshot

A MarketBeat filing-focused report dated December 16 says WT Wealth Management increased its Tesla stake by 178.7%, purchasing 5,972 shares and bringing total holdings to 9,313 shares valued at about $2.96 million. ^[4]

Carter Financial Group: opened a new Tesla position valued near $1.47 million

A separate MarketBeat report dated December 15 highlighted Carter Financial Group INC. initiating a Tesla position, purchasing 4,617 shares valued at approximately $1.47 million—about 1.0% of its portfolio and its 26th largest holding, according to the report’s summary of its SEC filing. ^[5]

Orion Portfolio Solutions: increased holdings to more than 125,000 shares

Another MarketBeat filing recap said Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its Tesla position by 14.8%, adding 16,119 shares to reach 125,345 shares worth roughly $39.8 million. ^[6]

Notably, the same report referenced additional large institutional activity in Tesla, including a new position reported for Norges Bank and a very large existing stake reported for Vanguard Group—underscoring how deeply Tesla remains embedded across major portfolios. ^[7]

National Wealth Management Group: moderate increase to 8,447 shares

MarketBeat also reported National Wealth Management Group LLC increased its Tesla stake by 26.3% to 8,447 shares worth about $2.683 million, representing roughly 1.5% of holdings and ranking as its 18th largest position. ^[8]

Momentum Wealth Planning: new stake, with Tesla at ~2.7% of portfolio

Another filing-driven update said Momentum Wealth Planning LLC purchased a new Tesla stake of 9,802 shares valued around $3.114 million, with TSLA making up about 2.7% of its investment portfolio and ranking as its 11th largest holding. ^[9]

Not all moves were bullish: Texas Permanent School Fund trimmed its Tesla stake

Institutional activity wasn’t one-directional. A MarketBeat report dated December 16 said Texas Permanent School Fund Corp cut its Tesla stake by 32.3%, selling 104,981 shares and ending with 220,203 shares worth about $69.95 million. ^[10]

Why these filings matter—without overreading them

These types of stories often spark immediate interest because they look like real-time “smart money” signals. In reality, filing-based snapshots can be backward-looking (depending on filing type and timing), and they don’t always indicate what an institution holds today.

Still, the cluster of updates landing as Tesla trades at record levels adds useful texture: some managers are clearly comfortable increasing exposure into strength, while others are taking chips off the table.

And that split view is also visible elsewhere—especially in insider activity and Wall Street research.

Institutional buying vs. insider selling: what today’s mix is telling investors

Several of the filing recaps also flagged recent insider sales, including transactions by Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja and director Kimbal Musk.

Across multiple MarketBeat summaries, the same two insider sales were repeatedly highlighted:

Kimbal Musk sold 56,820 shares for roughly $25.6 million (reported average price around $450.66) and
CFO Vaibhav Taneja sold 2,637 shares for roughly $1.17 million (reported average price around $443.93). ^[11]

MarketBeat’s reports also note insiders hold about 19.9% of Tesla stock, while institutional investors and hedge funds hold roughly 66.2%. ^[12]

Insider selling can happen for many reasons (taxes, diversification, scheduled plans), but it becomes more market-moving when it clusters near highs—especially when Tesla’s valuation and long-term thesis are already hotly debated.

Tesla stock hits a new record high as robotaxi optimism intensifies

On December 16, 2025, Tesla stock hit a new record high around $490.25, according to Investors.com, rising roughly 3% during Tuesday’s session. ^[13]

The rally is tightly tied to investor belief that Tesla’s next phase won’t be defined only by EV unit sales—but by software-like margins from autonomy, plus longer-range bets on robotics and AI.

What changed in the robotaxi story?

Reuters reported that Tesla shares jumped on December 15 after CEO Elon Musk said Tesla was testing robotaxis without safety monitors in the front passenger seat. Reuters also described Tesla’s limited robotaxi service launched in Austin, Texas, in June using modified Model Y vehicles, initially geo-fenced and featuring a human “safety monitor” in the passenger seat. ^[14]

That “safety monitor coming out” implication is a psychological line in the sand for markets: it signals confidence—whether justified or not—that Tesla is pushing toward a more scalable autonomy model.

Analyst targets moved too: Mizuho lifts its price target to $530

In one of the day’s most-circulated research updates, MarketBeat reported that Mizuho raised its Tesla price target to $530 from $475 while maintaining an “outperform” rating. ^[15]

Investopedia also reported that Mizuho’s bullishness was tied to perceived improvements in Tesla’s self-driving software, and noted that analysts remain divided overall, with an average target around $400 implying downside from then-current levels. ^[16]

Tesla expands its Europe strategy with a major battery-cell investment at Giga Berlin

While autonomy grabbed the market’s attention, Tesla’s most concrete, near-term industrial news on December 16 came from Germany.

Reuters reported Tesla said it is creating conditions to produce up to 8 gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery cells per year at its Gruenheide gigafactory near Berlin starting in 2027. ^[17]

Tesla said it is investing “another three-digit million amount” in cell production, bringing total investments in the local cell factory to nearly €1 billion (about $1.2 billion). ^[18]

Tesla framed the move as a push for deeper vertical integration—“everything from battery cells to vehicles” produced at one location—calling it unique in Europe and a way to strengthen supply chain resilience. Reuters also noted Tesla acknowledged Europe’s cost challenge versus China and the U.S. in making cells economically, and that the Gruenheide plant employs about 11,500 staff. ^[19]

In practical terms, this is Tesla putting money behind a familiar thesis: control the core components, reduce dependency, and protect margins—especially if global supply chains become more volatile.

Full Self-Driving v14: impressive Level 2 progress, but the “unsupervised” debate remains

As Tesla’s market value narrative leans harder on autonomy, scrutiny of the technology is increasing as well.

On December 16, Electrek published a hands-on review describing Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) v14 as an incremental improvement and “the most impressive Level 2 system available in a consumer vehicle,” while emphasizing it remains “far from” unsupervised self-driving. ^[20]

Electrek’s review also highlighted a growing hardware divide: the publication said v14 is available only for vehicles with Tesla’s HW4 (AI4) computer and raised doubts that older HW3 vehicles will ever deliver what was promised for unsupervised autonomy. ^[21]

At the same time, more bullish commentary in mainstream finance coverage has pointed to fast-improving performance and the possibility of rapid robotaxi scaling—one reason Tesla’s stock is reacting so intensely. ^[22]

This is the tension defining Tesla in late 2025:

Bulls see a software flywheel forming in autonomy and robotics.
Skeptics see regulatory barriers, edge-case risk, and marketing promises that remain unfulfilled.

Governance scrutiny is also part of the Tesla story this week

Another Tesla headline circulating alongside the stock surge: board compensation.

Reuters reported (via an Equilar analysis) that between 2018 and 2024, Tesla’s board amassed more than $3 billion in stock-based compensation, far exceeding peers, with particularly large gains tied to pre-2021 stock options that later rose sharply with Tesla’s share price. ^[23]

This matters because Tesla’s valuation depends heavily on trust—trust in execution, oversight, and risk management. Any governance debate can become a pressure point if the autonomy story hits turbulence.

What comes next: the Tesla catalysts investors are watching after the December 16 surge

With Tesla shares in record territory and institutional filings adding fuel to the spotlight, investors are likely to focus on a few near-term questions:

Robotaxi scaling: Will Tesla expand beyond limited geofenced pilots—and how quickly can it do so while satisfying regulators and public safety expectations? ^[24]
Battery economics in Europe: Can Tesla make cell production viable in Europe despite cost disadvantages Tesla itself acknowledged, and will the €1 billion-scale investment translate into supply security and margin benefits? ^[25]
Analyst dispersion: The spread between bullish targets (like $530 and higher) and the broader “Hold”-leaning consensus around $400 highlights how fragile sentiment can be if expectations outrun results. ^[26]
Institutional follow-through: Filing snapshots show active positioning, but the bigger question is whether institutions continue adding at record prices—or rotate elsewhere if volatility rises. ^[27]
Technology reality check: Hands-on reviews of FSD v14 suggest meaningful progress while underscoring that “unsupervised” remains a different bar entirely—and the gap between the two is where reputational and regulatory risk lives. ^[28]

Bottom line

Tesla’s December 16, 2025 news cycle offered a rare “all at once” snapshot of the company’s story: a stock breaking into new highs, institutions repositioning through disclosed filings, a new European battery investment with billion-euro ambition, and an autonomy narrative that’s simultaneously accelerating—and being challenged more loudly than ever. ^[29]

If Tesla’s robotaxi roadmap continues to show tangible milestones, the market may keep rewarding the company as a next-generation AI platform. If progress stalls—or regulation tightens—today’s record prices could face sharper tests. ^[30]

References

Tesla Stock Hits a Fresh Record High as SEC Filings Spotlight Institutional Buying—and a New Battery Push in Germany