The sale comes as the bicycles to hair dryers conglomerate is seeking to reduce its dependence on Tesla and raise cash for investing in growth.
Panasonic’s battery business is dominated by Elon Musk’s Tesla, but the two firms have had at times a tense relationship with executives trading barbs publicly.
Panasonic bought 1.4 million Tesla shares at $21.15 each in 2010 for about $30 million. That stake was worth $730 million at the end of March 2020. Shares have gained almost seven fold since then and closed up 3.5% at $679.82 apiece on Thursday.
The stake sale will not affect the partnership with Tesla, the
spokesperson said, but comes as the automaker is moving to diversify its own battery supply chain.
Panasonic said earlier this year it would buy the shares of US supply-chain software company Blue Yonderthat it does not already own, in a $7.1 billion deal.
Panasonic shares were up 4.5% on Friday, on track for their biggest daily rise since January.