A share investor's 313 percent gain on US$1.9m is failing to wow internet users, some likening it to sensationalised investing.
In a post shared on subredditr/wallstreetbets, a Reddit user shares a screenshot showing the value of their 7640 Tesla shares at a whopping US$7.895 million.
"Thanks to $TSLA, I'm buying a new wife for Christmas", the Reddit user jokes in their post.
It shows an investment gain of US$5.988 million (313.98 percent). Since the last close, the dollar value of shares shown dropped by almost US$230,000 (2.83 percent).
On Thursday, the post had garnered over 3400 responses, some users joking that they'd make a "great wife", another saying they'd make a "great wife's boyfriend".
Many put the gain into perspective, pointing out most people don't have a spare US$1.9 million to invest and risk making losses on.
This makes the gain appear higher than what it really is.
"I know the change at that amount of money seems insane. But it's essentially like this guy went from $2,000 to $8,000," one user said.
"It's amazing how fast you can turn a million into a bigger million," said another.
"This is proof that all you need is a few $million in loose cash and you too could be rich someday!" said a third.
Other users pointed out that people are quick to share their gains, but there are also plenty of losses, one saying "there are dudes on the other side who lost millions".
"This is only the money that he's invested in Tesla. Chances are he has a diverse portfolio and has millions invested in other companies too," pointed out another.
Simran Kaur, share investor and host of the 'Girls that Invest' podcast, told Newshub Tesla is among the seven companies world-wide that have reached over $1 trillion in market capitalization - and the only car company to do so.
Tesla has a "cult-like following, buoyed in part by Elon Musk's involvement on social media, Kaur said.
At the end of 2020, Tesla's share price was US$705. As more investors jumped onto the bandwagon, on October 1, 2021, it was US$775, shooting up to US$1229 on November 4. Thursday's share price is US$1089.81 (NZ$1551.69).
"If you had invested around a year ago (15 November, 2020), you would've made 153 percent increase on your return (more than double)," Kaur said.
"From January 1, 2021, you would've made a 41 percent gain."
As a benchmark, this year-to-date, the S&P500 increased 26 percent.
David McEwen, share market analyst and founder of share investment advice app Stockfox, said many investors forget there's a difference between price and value.
Some may consider a share price over $1000 as expensive and buy a share for much less - but it's about the return on that money.
"A return of 313 percent is exceptional, but Tesla is not the only company that's done that," McEwen said.
Due to scalability and expectation of higher future return, new technology stocks are popular among investors, he said. Another option worth considering is companies offering virtual services on a global scale.
To allow for rises and falls, a basic rule of share investing is to spread risk, investing across different companies.
"I encourage people to develop their own methodology...find what's comfortable and pick the right strategy that suits them," McEwen added.
