REUTERS/Steve Nesius

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund sold most of its massive Tesla position in the fourth quarter, before the stock surged 112%, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The fund previously held 8.2 million shares — now it's down to 39,151.

In 2018, Tesla CEO Elon Musk named the wealth fund as a source of funding for the company's short-lived bid to go private.

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Among investors wishing they had held on to more Tesla stock in 2020: Saudi Arabia.

The country's sovereign wealth fund sold nearly all its shares in the electric-car maker last quarter, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

But since the sale, shares have surged even higher. On strong earnings and a price-target bump from the company's biggest bull, Tesla has rallied 112% since the start of the year as of Tuesday's market close.

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund pared its position of over 8.2 million shares back to a mere 39,151 in the fourth quarter, Bloomberg reported, citing a regulatory filing. The fund likely did not miss out completely on Tesla's bull run, as shares rose throughout the quarter.

The sale marks a striking shift, particularly for a fund that Tesla CEO Elon Musk said would provide the funding for Tesla to go private in 2018. The claims, which began on Twitter, quickly drew scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission, which sued the CEO. In addition to fining Musk $20 million, the SEC required in its settlement with Musk that an "experienced securities lawyer" preapprove his tweets about Tesla's business.

Where Tesla shares will go next has been the talk of markets this week. The surge has squeezed short-sellers while drawing its fair share of critics; traders, analysts, and politicians have said in recent days that the run-up is bound to come tumbling down.

Tesla shares traded down as much as 15.2% on Wednesday before paring losses.

Read more: Renowned strategist Tom Lee pinpoints why exactly Tesla has surged 100% in just a month — and explains why it's still one of his top stock picks of 2020

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