Elon Musk says he's considering taking Tesla private

"It's not easy to take a company that's losing money private", Galloway said.

In his tweet, Mr Musk said he could buy outstanding shares in the firm for $420 each, around a fifth higher than the share's current price.

On April Fool's Day, Mr Musk, who owns nearly 20% of the company, joked on Twitter about Tesla going bankrupt. The company had a market value of $58 billion as of Monday's close.

Before its recent rally, Tesla's share price had been in a downward spiral for much of the summer, as the company struggled to meet production targets for its midrange Model 3 sedan.

Tesla's shares were up 6.5% at $363.46.

In a Twitter direct message to Ars Technica, Musk confirmed he was serious about the proposal.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission allows companies to use social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to announce key information in compliance with its fair disclosure rules so long as investors have been alerted about which social media outlets will be used to disseminate such information.

Shortly after, Mr Musk responded to replies to his tweet, asking if he would remain in control of the company.

Going private is one way to avoid the intense scrutiny of public markets. Musk's other primary venture, SpaceX, remains privately held. "Would create special-purpose fund enabling anyone to stay with Tesla".

Analysts took Musk at his word.

And according to a report by The Financial Times, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund - which is overseen by crown prince Mohammed bin Salman - has reportedly invested heavily in Tesla, building up a stake between 3% to 5%.