Tesla stock jumps 16 percent as Musk blasts 'recall'

Tesla Motors saw its stock skyrocket 16 percent Tuesday after CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to contest a report that thousands of its vehicles were being recalled, and the company announced stronger sales than expected.

Chief engineer Jerome Guillen, speaking at the Detroit auto show, said deliveries of Tesla's flagship Model S were up 20 percent over expectations, selling 6,900 of the sedans in the fourth quarter.

That same vehicle was subject to a "recall," announced Monday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over a potentially overheating power adaptor.

Musk took issue with the NHTSA's word choice, explaining that the so-called recall was actually a software update, and that the company was sending an upgraded adaptor to the owners in the mail.

"The word 'recall' needs to be recalled," he tweeted.

Tesla stock rose 16 percent, closing at 161.27 Tuesday and opening higher, at 168.44 Wednesday. The stock, which dropped sharply in November to as low as 120.50, has since rebounded, although it is still off its all-time high of 194.50.

[NHTSA]