Long-time investor Ron Baron predicted on Friday that Tesla shares will hit $500 by 2025. He also reiterated his forecast that the electric car maker’s shares will reach $1,500 in 2030, up 467% from Thursday’s close. His $500 target implies an 89% upside. “It’s really a huge growth opportunity,” Barron said in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” noting that only 6 percent of cars are now electric and highlighting the opening of Tesla’s charging stations. Tesla recently struck deals with Ford and General Motors that allow the automaker to use Tesla’s charging network. Baron first bought Tesla stock in 2014. The chairman and CEO of Baron Capital invested $380 million and has made $4 billion so far, he said. A few years ago, he cashed out about $1.5 billion while rebalancing his portfolio, he said. TSLA 5Y Mountain Tesla 5-Year Performance Baron Capital currently owns 17.5 million Tesla shares, or just under 10% of the portfolio, he said. Baron also personally owns 5 million shares. Tesla stock has been on the rise, up more than 114% so far in 2023. The rise led longtime Tesla bullish Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas to downgrade the stock from overweight to equal weight on Thursday. But Baron said he is a long-term investor. “The price is the same as it was three years ago, but the business has tripled in size,” he said. Tesla shares have fallen 65% in the last year.
