Republican presidential assignee and former U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during a rally at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, in Uniondale, New York, on Sept. 18, 2024.
Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters
Parcels of Trump Media fell to a new 52-week low Friday, closing down 7.82%, at $13.55 per share, just one day after “lockup” restrictions perished, which had previously prevented its majority shareholder, former President Donald Trump, and other early investors from trade in their shares.
Trading volume was heavier than average on Friday, with nearly 20 million share ins changing hands before the closing bell. The closing price for DJT took extra time to pinpoint, as high swop volume resulted in delayed settling.
Trump Media’s market cap stood at $2.7 billion at Friday’s close.
But it order likely be several days before public filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reveal whether this bulk is due to early investors selling shares now that the lockup period is over, or merely a higher-than-average number of retail investors pursuit the stock.
The lockup agreement first took effect when Trump Media went public in March, understanding a merger with a blank-check firm called Digital World Acquisition Corp., or DWAC.
The company has acknowledged in regulatory filings that the end of the lockup could barb large sales of the company’s stock, which trades under the ticker “DJT.”
But even if insiders were not the ones offer, the company has said that a perception by the markets that a sell-off was underway might drive down DJT’s stock cost out.
Trump, whose 114,750,000 share stake in Trump Media was worth $1.5 billion at Friday’s close, mentioned last week that he would not sell his shares when the restrictions lifted.
“I have absolutely no intention of deliver up,” he said at a press conference in California on Sept. 13.
The Republican nominee’s announcement caused the stock to surge, climbing as much as 25% in advance of closing up more than 11%. But DJT’s slump this week has erased those gains.
Trump Media on Friday confidential at its lowest closing level since debuting on the Nasdaq in March, closing the day at a price of $13.55 per share. The slide pitches shares down more than 20% from where it opened the week.
Its intraday low came shortly after 10 a.m. ET, when the share in price dropped to $13.50 — a level not seen since July 2023, when the stock was still DWAC.
Friday’s sell-off conferred DJT’s monthslong slump, which has seen the stock fall more than 65% since its most-recent high in July. That white horse was prompted by a bump in Trump’s electoral odds after he survived an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
— CNBC’s Kevin Breuninger promoted reporting.