A jury has concluded that Elon Musk made misleading public remarks during a pivotal stage of his 2022 acquisition of Twitter.

Following two days of deliberations, jurors in federal court in San Francisco delivered a unanimous verdict against the technology entrepreneur. The case was brought by a group of Twitter investors who claimed they relied on Musk’s public statements when making decisions about buying and selling shares.

While on the witness stand earlier this month, Musk maintained that he had not deceived investors. He argued that his public comments and tweets were misinterpreted and that readers drew conclusions that went beyond what he had actually said.

The jury, however, determined that several of his public assertions — including claims about issues with Twitter’s user data and suggestions that he might withdraw from the $44bn takeover agreement — were deliberately misleading.

Attorneys representing Musk did not immediately provide a statement after the verdict. Lawyers for the investor group, led by Oregon small-business owner Brian Belgrave, also declined to comment.

This is not the first legal dispute stemming from Musk’s social media activity. In a separate 2023 case, he successfully defended himself against claims by Tesla shareholders who alleged they were misled by his posts about the electric vehicle company.

In Friday’s decision, the jury concluded that Musk’s statements between May and October 2022 artificially depressed Twitter’s stock price by an estimated $3 to $8 per share.

As a result, members of the investor class could be entitled to compensation amounting to thousands of dollars each to cover their losses.

Monte Mann, a business litigation attorney at Armstrong Teasdale, said the outcome delivers a strong warning.

“When your public statements influence financial markets, you are responsible for the impact they create,” he said.

Beginning in May 2022, Musk posted a series of messages questioning the number of fake accounts, or “bots,” on Twitter. He announced that the deal was “on hold” and later indicated he intended to abandon the agreement altogether.

Twitter filed a lawsuit seeking to compel Musk to complete the acquisition. In early October, he proceeded with the purchase at the originally agreed price. The following year, he rebranded the platform as X.

The months of uncertainty took a financial toll on investors such as Belgrave, who traded Twitter shares during that volatile period.

Belgrave testified that he sold thousands of shares in July 2022 after concluding from Musk’s public remarks that the acquisition would not go forward.

He sold the stock at a loss compared with his earlier purchase price and far below the $54.20 per share Musk ultimately paid to finalize the takeover.

“I felt taken advantage of,” Belgrave told the court. “I believe I was misled.”

During his testimony, Musk frequently clashed with attorneys representing the investor group.

At times, he declined to respond with a straightforward “yes” or “no,” asserting that the questioning was framed in a way that could mislead jurors.

“If this case were about whether I’ve posted foolish tweets, I would admit to that,” Musk acknowledged during one exchange.