Elon Musk has done it.
Electric car maker Tesla $TSLA eclipsed General Motors $GM in terms of market capitalization this morning to briefly become the most valuable auto company in the world. Tesla shares rose as high as $313.73, pushing its market cap to $51.17 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported. GM was valued at $51.1 billion in early trading.
Tesla’s stock has been on a tear in 2017, climbing 45% year-to-date. Investors became even more bullish on Tesla earlier this month after the company said it delivered a record 25,418 vehicles in the first quarter, a 69% increase over last year. That announcement propelled Tesla’s market cap ahead of 113-year-old Ford $F’s.
GM has since pulled back ahead of Tesla, but it seems clear which company has the momentum. Meanwhile, the GM CEO who killed the original electric car is now back in the electric car business—but not with GM.
