Brexit Dumps Driverless Stocks

The Driverless Transportation (D20) Stock Index almost doubled the losses seen by the Dow Industrials and the S&P 500 last week, dropping 3.0 percent to close at 140.70. Both the Dow and the S&P 500 lost 1.6 percent on news that Great Britain voted to leave the EU with its Brexit referendum. With 15 losers and five gainers, the D20 dropped to levels it has not seen since February.

On the bright side Mobileye (MBLY) leapt up nearly 6.5 percent, making the stock the D20’s price performance leader for the second consecutive week. Mobileye’s stock jumped $2.53 to $42.70 last week on rumors that it may extend its partnership with BMW.

Investors are concerned about Tesla’s (TSLA) plan to acquire Solar City. After the announcement last week, its stock dropped $22.32 to $193.15 to close down more than 10 percent. The market doesn’t seem to believe that solar panels and electric vehicles can be a synergistic fit. The market has occasionally doubted the vision of Tesla CEO and founder Elon Musk, only to be proven wrong.

Visit the Driverless Transportation D20 Stock Index page to learn more about it and its component stocks.

Up and Comers:

Santa Cruz Tech Beat reports Pearl raised $50 million in its first round of funding. Scotts Valley, Calif.-based Pearl has developed RearVision, an easily-installed backup camera that “provides obstacle alerts and updates automatically.” Pearl develops aftermarket products for the autonomous vehicle market. Pearl’s three cofounders met at Apple.

A Ford Motor Credit Co. lease-sharing pilot has been a flop after three months in Texas, according to Automotive News. Ford Credit Link has signed no customers at three participating dealers in the Austin area. Three to six customers can sign on to a lease then use the vehicle as they see fit. “Maybe there would be more interest in a metro city, but especially in Texas, getting three to six people to agree to something has been very difficult,” said one dealer.