Nikola falls 18% as insider lockup period expires, allowing founder Trevor Milton to sell 91 million shares (NKLA)

<p><img src="https://static1.businessinsider.com/image/5fc67cad50e71a001155836d-2400/2019-12-02T220635Z_1967177124_RC2AND970M1Z_RTRMADP_3_CNH-INDUSTRIAL-NIKOLA.JPG" border="0" alt="Trevor Milton" data-mce-source="Massimo Pinca/Reuters"></p><p></p><bi-shortcode id="summary-shortcode" data-type="summary-shortcode" class="mceNonEditable" contenteditable="false">Summary List Placement</bi-shortcode><ul><li><strong>Nikola fell 18% on Tuesday, the same day a lockup period for insiders expired.</strong></li><li><strong>The expiration of the lockup period enables Nikola insiders to sell their Nikola stock, including founder Trevor Milton, who owns 91.6 million shares.</strong></li><li><strong>Altogether, insiders are now able to sell upwards of 166 million shares of Nikola following today's expiration date.</strong></li><li><strong>The expiration date comes one day after Nikola and General Motors entered into a revised version of a long-awaited deal.</strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingestutm_source=msn.com&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_content=msn-slideshow&amp;utm_campaign=bodyurl'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories</a>.</strong></li></ul><hr><p><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/nkla-stock">Nikola</a> fell 18% on Tuesday, the same day a lockup period for insiders to sell their shares expired.</p><p>The expiry of the lockup period means Nikola insiders are now able to sell any shares of Nikola that they hold.</p><p>There are 166 million shares that insiders and early investors are now eligible to sell, including founder Trevor Milton's 91.6 million share stake.</p><p>According to Nikola's <a href="https://www.sec.gov/ix'doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1731289/000173128920000069/nkla-20200930.htm">third quarter 10-Q filing</a> with the SEC, 161 million shares are eligible for sale today, while another 5 million shares could become eligible for sale depending on the price of Nikola's stock.&nbsp;</p><p>Milton's stake was worth $1.9 billion as of Monday's closing price, and is the biggest stake of any Nikola investor.</p><p>Milton <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nikola-stock-price-founder-trevor-milton-leaves-executive-chairman-hindenburg-2020-9-1029606958#'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">voluntarily stepped down</a> from the company as chairman in late September, after a short-seller report from <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nikola-stock-price-short-seller-report-alleges-years-deception-hindenburg-2020-9-1029579021#">Hindenburg Research</a> alleged that Milton and Nikola deceived investors. Nikola dismissed many of the claims raised in the report.</p><p>With 361 million total shares outstanding, the insider shares eligible to be traded for the first time today represent 46% of Nikola's total float.&nbsp;</p><p><em><strong>Read more:</strong>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-31-set-to-become-growth-engines-hsbc-2020-12'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest'utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HSBC says buy these 31 global stocks that are exposed to the pandemic's biggest disruptions to tech and set to become growth engines of the future</a></em></p><p>The lockup expiration date came one day after <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nikola-stock-price-strikes-long-awaited-general-motors-deal-2020-11-1029849049">Nikola and General Motors entered into a revised deal</a> to develop and manufacture Nikola's Class 8 semi-truck vehicles.</p><p>The announcement of the long-awaited deal sent Nikola shares into a tailspin, falling as much as 25% after it was revealed that General Motors would not longer make a $2 billion investment in the start-up trucking company, nor would it work with the company to develop and manufacture its Badger pickup truck.</p><p>But JPMorgan views any dip in Nikola as <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nikola-stock-price-good-buy-opportunity-focuses-semi-trucks-jpmorgan-2020-11-1029850331">"a good buying opportunity," according to a Monday note.</a></p><p>Shares of Nikola are down as much as 52% over the past week.</p><p><img src="https://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5fc6828c037cbd0018613252-830/nk.JPG" border="0" alt="nk.JPG" data-mce-source="Markets Insider"></p><p><a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/nikola-stock-price-insider-lockup-period-expires-founder-trevor-milton-2020-12-1029854720#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-its-like-to-do-your-own-taxes-for-the-very-first-time-2018-2">July 15 is Tax Dayhere's what it's like to do your own taxes for the very first time</a></p>
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