Elon Musk's net worth drops $113 billion as Tesla and SpaceX shares tumble

Tesla stock slipped 3.3% and SpaceX fell 3.8% at the close of Wednesday trading, underperforming the S&P 500’s 1.6% gain and lagging behind peers such as Amazon and Apple, which rose 6.1% and 5.3% respectively. The declines erased roughly $33.5 billion of Musk’s paper wealth that day and a further $79.7 billion on Thursday, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, bringing the two-day loss to about $113 billion.

The combined market value of the two companies dropped from roughly $3.5 trillion on Tuesday night to $3.04 trillion by Thursday night, a reduction of about $456 billion. SpaceX’s market cap fell to $1.68 trillion, about 87% of its pre-midterm level, while Tesla’s fell to $1.36 trillion, about 86% of its earlier value.

Investors cited worries that the new Congress could increase scrutiny of Musk’s political contributions and the companies’ federal contracts. Democrats have indicated interest in probing Musk’s involvement with the digital-currency platform DOGE and potential conflicts of interest stemming from SpaceX’s government work. House Oversight Committee chair Rep. Robert Garcia has said his committee plans to investigate “corporate corruption,” and his spokesperson told Politico that Musk’s role in DOGE is a target of that inquiry.

"The nail that sticks out gets hammered first, and Musk has certainly stuck out, especially in government, whether it be donations, the election, and any of the feathers he ruffled while he was at DOGE," said Keith Snyder, senior equity analyst at CFRA Research.

Senator Richard Blumenthal also sent a letter to Musk requesting details on SpaceX’s Department of Defense contracts and the company’s ability to limit Starlink service after reports that Ukraine’s military lost access without notice.

Snyder characterized the sell-off as a “knee-jerk reaction” to the election and an overestimation of Democratic influence, noting that President Donald Trump retains veto power over major AI regulations and remains supportive of Musk. He added that the Federal Communications Commission’s Republican majority reduces the likelihood of immediate regulatory actions, though Democratic control of Congress could slow future initiatives.

Other analysts expressed a more cautious view. Dan Ives warned that a potential Tesla-SpaceX merger could face a tougher regulatory path if Texas shifts politically, adding that broader investor concerns about AI-related spending persist. Snyder acknowledged that political risk remains, especially if a Democrat wins the White House in two years, but said the companies have multiple safeguards in place.

Musk previously told investors that SpaceX aims to bring 10 gigawatts of compute capacity online by 2027, on top of the 2.5-3 gigawatts expected by the end of 2026, a scale that analysts compare to Google’s data-center capacity from 1999-2026.