Trump on immigration, border security
Trump Media & Technology Group has had a wild stock market ride this month. After quadrupling in price just days before, the stock on Thursday plunged as much as 39% since its intraday high on Tuesday. The two-day decline has shaved more than $2.4 billion from former President Donald Trump’s stake in the business, which trades under the ticker DJT, the same as his initials.
Trump Media, which owns the Truth Social app, shed $5.35, or 13.4%, to $34.68 in early afternoon trading on Thursday, after touching an intraday low of $33.41. That comes after a 22% tumble on Wednesday, which followed more than five weeks of market gains, sending the shares to a Tuesday intraday high of $54.68.
Because of their volatility, DJT has earned comparisons to meme stocks, or companies that trade on social media buzz rather than revenue growth or profitability, investors’ favored yardsticks. Despite Truth Social’s declining revenue and large losses, Trump Media shares surged for much of October as polls in the presidential race tightened and as betting markets such as Polymarket predicted odds in Trump’s favor to win.
It’s not exactly clear what sparked the two-day sell-off, but DJT shares have attracted a number of speculators and short sellers, with the latter betting the stock would fall. Some of the October surge in DJT shares could have come from short sellers forced to cover their bets, which requires them to buy stock and create a so-called short squeeze, which can send shares higher, according to research group S3 Partners.
“Trump and Media Group (DJT) stock, closely tied to Trump’s election chances, faces high squeeze risk due to limited float and elevated short interest,” S3 wrote on Tuesday. “Trump’s 57% stake and current short losses intensify squeeze potential.”
Trump’s stake in DJT
Trump owns about 115 million shares of Trump Media, making him the largest investor in the fledgling social media company. At its most recent intraday peak of $54.68 on Tuesday, his stake was valued at almost $6.3 billion.
But the two-day sell-off has whittled the value of that stake to about $3.8 billion, based on Thursday’s intraday low.
To be sure, those losses represents paper wealth, and Trump has vowed not to sell his shares after a lock-up period expired last month, which now enables him to liquidate his stake. Because Trump owns almost 60% of the company’s stock, selling even a portion of his stake could flood the market with available shares, potentially lowering its price.
Many of the other DJT shareholders are small investors who bought shares as a way to express support for the former president. On Thursday, as the stock tumbled for a second day, some of its shareholders vowed revenge in the months to come, with some blaming short sellers and others pointing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC.)
“I was happy to strap my investment dollars to @realDonaldTrump and take all the financial arrows with him,” wrote Chad Nedohin, a minister and shareholder who runs a DJT group on Truth Social. “The more they try to hurt DJT, the worse it’s going to be for them in 2025.”
Nedohin added #TrumpTheSEC at the end of his post.
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Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.
