GameStop shares skyrocketed Monday, fueled by speculation that Keith Gill, the man behind the company’s epic “meme stock” short squeeze in 2021, may have amassed a substantial stake in the video game retailer.
CNBC reports that GameStop shares soared 71 percent to trade at around $39.71 apiece on Monday morning, settling down to a still substantial 25 percent gain in midmorning trading, as investors reacted to a cryptic post by Keith Gill, the legendary trader known as DeepF——Value on Reddit and Roaring Kitty on YouTube and X/Twitter. The rally was so intense that the NYSE briefly halted trading in the stock due to volatility.
Gill, who inspired the meme stock craze of 2021, resurfaced on Sunday night, posting a screenshot of what appears to be his portfolio holding a significant amount of GameStop common shares and call options. According to the account snapshot shared on Reddit’s r/SuperStonk forum, Gill’s position consists of 5 million GameStop shares worth $115.7 million based on Friday’s closing price. Additionally, the account showed 120,000 call options with a strike price of $20, set to expire on June 21st, which were purchased for approximately $5.68 each.
While the authenticity of the post has not been independently verified by CNBC, it is notable that Gill did not share the update on the infamous WallStreetBets chatroom, where he had previously posted all of his trade updates during the height of the GameStop mania over three years ago.
Coinciding with the portfolio screenshot, Gill also posted a cryptic picture of a reverse card from the game Uno on X, further fueling speculation among the Reddit trading community.
The GameStop rally had a ripple effect on other meme stocks, with shares of AMC surging 30 percent on Monday after climbing 48 percent in May. Reddit’s stock also gained five percent in the wake of the renewed meme stock craze.
This is not the first time Gill’s return to social media has sparked a buying frenzy. Three weeks ago, he simply posted a picture of a man in a chair leaning forward, which was enough to trigger a rally that saw GameStop shares more than double in May alone. The company took advantage of the surge by raising over $900 million through a stock sale.
Read more at CNBC here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.
