Tesla announced a five-for-one stock split on Tuesday evening. The shares will begin trading on a split-adjusted basis on August 31.
Tesla shares rose more than 6% in post-market trading even though the stock split changes nothing fundamental about the stock. Theoretically, the move could mean more smaller investors could afford the stock, but those investors are minuscule compared to major institutions. What's more, most brokerages offer fractional trading now anyways, allowing small traders to buy a slice of expensive stocks.
Shares of Tesla have more than tripled so far this year, and are up 228.54% year-to-date. The stock reacted most recently to Tesla's second quarter earnings, when it reported its fourth straight quarter of profits, which qualified it to join the S&P 500. Tesla is currently 23.43% below its all-time intraday high of $1,794.99, which it hit on July 13.
Apple similarly announced its latest stock split on July 30.
