Markets

Tesla jumps 12% as stock split takes effect, Apple gains 3%

Key Points
  • Monday's gains are just the latest in a string of strong performances since the companies announced plans for stock splits.
  • Apple said July 30 its board approved a 4-for-1 stock split. Since then, the stock is up more than 32%.
  • Tesla has skyrocketed more than 70% since it announced a 5-for-1 stock split on Aug. 11.
Apple and Tesla's stock split will take effect today—Here's what five experts are watching now
VIDEO3:5003:50
Apple and Tesla's stock split will take effect today—Here's what five experts are watching now

Shares of Apple and Tesla rose sharply Monday, the first day of their stock splits.

Apple advanced 3.4% and was the best-performing component in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Tesla jumped 12.6%.

Monday's gains were the latest in a string of strong performances since the companies announced the stock splits.

Apple said July 30 its board approved a 4-for-1 stock split. Since then, the stock is up more than 34%. Tesla has skyrocketed more than 80% since it announced a 5-for-1 stock split on Aug. 11.

Billionaire investor Leon Cooperman, however, said Monday that run-ups on the back of stock-split announcements are a troublesome sign for the market.

"Look at Tesla and Apple: Everybody understands that splits don't create value," the founder of Omega Advisors told CNBC's "Squawk Box." "My dad once told me if you gave me five singles for a $5 bill, I'm no better off."

Monday's gains in Apple and Tesla came amid high volume as smaller traders are able to snap up shares in both companies at a much lower price than on Friday.

Apple traded 223.4 million shares, which is roughly 25% more than the stock's 30-day volume average of 178.588 million. Tesla shares exchanged hands 115.6 million times, well above its 30-day volume average of 73.369 million.

This year, smaller traders have been more actively participating in the market as commission-free online brokerage Robinhood grows in popularity. But Cooperman sees this as a potential sign of being overheated.

"I see signs of euphoria creeping into the market: the IPO SPAC market is one, [and] the craziness in many of the stocks that the Robinhood crowd has latched onto," Cooperman said. "You see a Kodak go from $1.50 to $60 and from $60 to $6 in a very short period of time … and when you look into it, it's the Robinhood crowd taking it up."

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