GameStop soars almost 50% as online stock influencer Roaring Kitty teases live stream
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GameStop shares surged 47 per cent to US$46.55 on June 6. The stock has soared 167 per cent since influencer Keith Gill tweeted a cryptic meme on May 12.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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NEW YORK – Shares of GameStop surged nearly 50 per cent on June 6 after the online stock influencer known as Roaring Kitty posted on YouTube that he would host a live stream on June 7.
The surge was the latest in a bout of volatile trading in the struggling video game seller’s shares that kicked off in May after the influencer, whose real name is Keith Gill, returned to X.com after a three-year hiatus.
The Roaring Kitty channel on YouTube on June 6 showed an upcoming live stream scheduled for 1600 GMT (midnight Singapore time) on June 7.
GameStop shares rose 47 per cent to US$46.55, triggering multiple volatility halts. The stock has soared 167 per cent since Mr Gill tweeted a cryptic meme on May 12.
On June 3, GameStop shares closed more than 20 per cent higher after Mr Gill’s Reddit profile returned with a post showing a US$116 million (S$156 million) bet on the stock after a three-year gap.
Mr Gill was a key player in the 2021 rally in GameStop and other so-called meme stocks that was fuelled by individual investors on Reddit’s wallstreetbets forum.
His recent return to social media rekindled rallies in GameStop, as well as other shares popular with individual traders on social media.
AMC Entertainment jumped 12 per cent on June 6, while headphone maker Koss rallied 15 per cent.
Mr Gill did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the upcoming live stream.
Within minutes of the posting, more than 10,000 YouTube users signalled an interest in being notified when the stream starts.
The video’s live chat featured hundreds of comments. GameStop’s ticker, GME, quickly started trending on the popular StockTwits chat room and Reddit’s wallstreetbets forum.
The latest surge adds to Mr Gill’s haul from positions disclosed on his Reddit account on June 2.
His stake of 120,000 calls at US$20 expiring on June 21 is now worth some US$325 million, giving him an unrealised profit of about US$260 million, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Mr Gill’s unverified holdings of five million GameStop shares that he paid roughly US$106 million for are now worth almost US$120 million more than that.
The June 6 rally again burned investors betting that GameStop’s rally would implode. Short-sellers endured almost US$1 billion in mark-to-market losses, according to data analytics firm S3 Parners.
The bearish investors are now down some US$1.36 billion in June, the firm’s data show.
The details of the scheduled stream also included a disclaimer that had not appeared in the account’s prior YouTube posts, bearing a warning that the video would be opinion-based, along with familiar equity legalese saying past performance is not indicative of future results.
“This YouTube channel is not under any obligation to update or correct any information provided in these videos,” the disclaimer read in part. “Statements and opinions are subject to change without notice. No compensation is received by this YouTube channel for the opinions expressed.”
The new disclaimer comes after a Wall Street Journal report that online brokerage E*Trade was considering banning Mr Gill from its platform amid concerns over whether his social media actions could amount to market manipulation.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission investigated the meme stock craze of 2021, ultimately finding that marketplace systems worked well. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG
