What happened
Shares of Tesla (TSLA 3.54%) sank on Friday, declining as much as 10.8% at one point during the trading day. By the time the market closed, the stock was down 6.4%.
The electric-car maker stock's continued beating was in part driven primarily by a tough day in the market for many stocks -- particularly for growth stocks like Tesla. But the ongoing drama in the news about Tesla CEO Elon Musk is negatively impacting the stock. Musk's attempted acquisition of Twitter (TWTR) is still uncertain. Further, an Insider report published on Thursday that contained accusations against Musk likely added downward pressure on the stock.
So what
Though Tesla's business has been doing great this year, its stock hasn't. Year to date, the stock is down 37% -- much worse than the S&P 500's 18% decline over that same period. The stock's downward trend has largely been tied to investors' skittishness toward highly valued growth stocks. With a price-to-earnings ratio of about 90 and a fast-growing top line, Tesla fits squarely into the growth stock category.
Of course, it isn't just growth stocks that have had a rough 2022. But they've generally been hit harder than the overall market. And this was largely true on Friday as well, helping explain Tesla stock's outsize decline compared to the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite's 0.3% pullback.
Investors may also be concerned about the time and energy Musk seems to be devoting to his attempt to buy social network Twitter. It could take away from his devotion to Tesla.
Now what
In Tesla's first-quarter earnings call in April, the company said it still expects to grow its vehicle production 50% or more in 2022 despite global supply constraints.
With potential growth like this on the horizon, Tesla shares are actually starting to look quite attractive at this level. For investors who have been on the sidelines and have been waiting for a good opportunity to buy, now may be a good time to take a closer look at the stock to see whether it is as appealing as it appears on the surface.