‘Meme stocks’ are storming back in to fashion this month, with (AMC Entertainment Holdings (NYSE:AMC)), GameStop Corp (NYSE:GME) and Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ:BBBY) all surging higher overnight.
Cinema owner AMC soared 44% to US$29.33, while last year’s poster meme stock, GameStop, rallied 25% to US$189.59.
Bed Bath & Beyond, another social media favourite, climbed 17% to US$26.32.
AMC’s jump was its largest daily percentage movement since last June, with the catalyst seemingly being chief executive Adam Aron’s pledge to strike more meme-stock-powered deals.
The company recently unveiled a US$27.9mln investment for a 22% stake in struggling gold miner Hycroft, an unusual deal for a theatre operating company.
Hycroft shares have rocketed since, climbing over 600% in the last month to US$2.32 while raising US$195mln through open market stock sales as others followed AMC’s lead and piled in.
Retail investors saved AMC last year after a similar share price surge, providing it with much-needed cash.
Using the experience it gained then it is now hoping to do the same for similar companies with “great assets” but “a liquidity problem,” said Aron, quoted on investment site Benzinga.
Users on the Reddit thread r/amcstock have speculated that Aron is attempting to buy several shorted companies, tying them to AMC to benefit from the subsequent rally as the shorters close out their positions.
One user, u/hugo_posh, speculated that Aron will look to acquire a stake in fellow meme stock Bed, Bath and Beyond.
GameStop chairman Ryan Cohen recently acquired a near 10% holding in the home-goods retailer, which saw its shares climb to US$20.61 from US$16.12.