Tesla Inc ( TSLA ) shares traded higher early Monday after CEO Elon Musk’s compensation package was approved.

What To Know: Tesla announced in a filing that the company approved an award of 96 million shares of restricted stock to Musk under the company's 2019 Equity Incentive Plan. The payment plan was approved by the board on Sunday.

Earlier this year, Musk appealed a court ruling that previously voided his compensation package. Tesla also announced that its board had formed a special committee to review compensation related to Musk.

“While we recognize that Elon's business ventures, interests and other potential demands on his time and attention are extensive and wide-ranging, … we are confident that this award will incentivize Elon to remain at Tesla and focus his unmatched leadership abilities on further creating shareholder value for Tesla shareholders,” the special committee said in the filing.

In a shareholder letter posted on X, Robyn Denholm, chair of Tesla’s board, and Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, a board director, said that Musk has delivered on the transformative and unprecedented growth that was required for him to earn the payments related to the incentive plan. The board members added that retaining Elon at Tesla is “more important than ever before.”

Wedbush’s Dan Ives said in a new note on Monday that the pay package sets the company up to keep Musk until at least 2030. He believes Musk is Tesla’s top asset as it focuses on becoming an AI-first company.

Wedbush maintained an Outperform rating on Tesla on Monday and reiterated a price target of $500, which may be helping boost shares in early trading.

Meanwhile, Reuters reported on Monday that Tesla’s China-made vehicle deliveries decreased 8.4% year-over-year in July as the company continues to grapple with weaker demand.

Tesla has reported two consecutive quarters of declining vehicle sales, but Musk continues to steer the company toward autonomous vehicles and humanoid bots to cement its place in the AI revolution. Musk said earlier this year that autonomous and robotics would “overwhelmingly dominate” Tesla’s future financial success. 

TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares were up 0.58% at $304.40 at the time of publication Monday, according to Benzinga Pro.

Tesla is currently trading below its 50-day moving average of $323, indicating a bearish short-term trend. The stock is, however, above the 100-day moving average of $296.99, suggesting potential support at this level. Resistance may be encountered around the 200-day moving average at $322.11, which could limit upside momentum in the near term.

With a market cap of $994.70 billion and a P/E ratio of 180.14, Tesla remains one of the most highly valued stocks in the market. The forward P/E of 158.73 indicates expectations for future earnings growth, but such high valuations may pose risks if growth does not materialize as anticipated.

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