One of the greatest short squeezes in history started on a SubReddit, where hundreds of thousands of retail investors banded together to drive the price of GameStop shares up to an all-time high of almost $500. Before the surge, GameStop's stock had been valued at $17.25.
In such a case, they have to compete with each other in a sense, because others are also clamoring to get rid of their stock—and there's no fundamental limit to how high the stock could climb as brokers initiate margin calls forcing shorts to buy to cover.
At its height, on January 28, the short squeeze caused the retailer's stock price to reach a pre-market value of over US$500 per share ($125 split-adjusted), nearly 30 times the $17.25 valuation at the beginning of the month. The price of many other heavily shorted securities and cryptocurrencies also increased.
In his early years, Buffett made use of short selling to hedge his long portfolio. He used to go around trying to borrow share certificates from institutions such as college endowments, pay them a small fee and use these holdings as a way of shorting the market.
Most expensive shares
The highest share prices on the NYSE have been those of Berkshire Hathaway class A, trading at over $625,000/share (in February 2024).
Tesla short squeeze
(NASDAQ: TSLA) were quoted at 28.68 USD. They moved rapidly upwards during the year and reached the price of 239.57 USD on 31 December, recording a growth of 735.32%. The short squeeze in Tesla Inc. shares was one of the most unexpected and profitable in the history of trading in decades.
Keith Gill is largely credited with sparking r/WallStreetBets' overwhelming interest in GameStop just prior to its legendary short squeeze in late 2020 and early 2021. Here's what he's worth now.
As of June 13, 2024, Gill's net worth includes more than 9 million GameStop shares valued at $262 million, and about $6.3 million in cash. He owns 6.6% of online retailer, Chewy, stock. Gill stepped away from his online accounts in 2021 before returning in May 2024.
The GameStop short squeeze, starting in January 2021, was a short squeeze occurring on shares of GameStop, primarily triggered by the Reddit forum WallStreetBets. This squeeze led to the share price reaching an all-time intraday high of US$483 on January 28, 2021 on the NYSE.
The best way to identify short squeeze candidates is to look at the number of shares short relative to a stock's average daily trading volume. This is known as the days to cover ratio. Stocks with days to cover ratios of 5 or more may be susceptible to short squeezes.
Although some short squeezes may occur naturally in the market, a scheme to manipulate the price or availability of stock in order to cause a short squeeze is illegal. In the end, short-sellers are considered well informed investors who have the ability to identify overvalued stocks.
The profit on Keith Gill's GameStop trades
It consisted of two parts: 5 million shares of GameStop stock purchased for $21.27, worth approximately $116 million at the time of the post. 120,000 June 2024 $20 call options purchased for about $5.68, worth nearly $66 million at the time of the post.
Even so, the gains posted by Ambrx Biopharma (AMAM) in Friday's session are unusual and particularly eye-catching. The stock soared to the tune of a hardly believable 1007% after the company announced pleasing results from the mid-stage testing of its breast cancer drug ARX788.
Who Loses and Who Benefits From a Short Squeeze? Speculators and traders who have short positions in a stock will face heavy losses if the stock undergoes a short squeeze. Contrarian investors who have built up long positions in the stock in anticipation of a short squeeze will benefit as the stock price climbs.
Keith Gill learned about investing and became convinced that GameStop stock was undervalued, sharing this belief with others on Twitter (now X) with the handle RoaringKitty. He initially purchased $53,000 worth of GameStop stock in 2019. At the height of the GameStop surge, Gill's stock was valued at $48 million.
Who owns the most shares of GameStop Corp (GME)? Vanguard owns the most shares of GameStop Corp (GME).
Between 2021–2024, Gill kept a low profile but continued to increase his GameStop ownership. As of June 2024, Gill owns 9 million Class A shares of Chewy, Inc valued at approximately $306 million as of close of business 27 December 2024. Gill's posts were described as "forthright, spreadsheet-laden content".
The gamma squeeze happens when the underlying stock's price begins to go up very quickly within a short period of time. As more money flows into call options from investors, that forces more buying activity which can lead to higher stock prices.
However, much like the GameStop short squeeze, after shares of Volkswagen peaked on Oct. 28, 2008, the price plunged 58% in four days. While short sellers may have been right long term, risk management would not allow them to hold as the stock surged higher.
By late January 2021, GameStop's price skyrocketed to a premarket high of over $500 per share in what was perhaps the most notorious short squeeze in stock market history, now memorialized in the 2023 film Dumb Money starring Paul Dano and Seth Rogen.