Video game retail stock GameStop Corp GME was one of the biggest financial storylines of 2021.
A movie based on the storyline put the stock back in the spotlight in 2023 and the stock is soaring once again thanks to the social media return of a key character in the GameStop saga.
What Happened: GameStop investor Keith Gill, also known as “Roaring Kitty” on social media and YouTube, and DeepF***ingValue on Reddit, made his return to social media on May 12, 2024.
The X, formerly known as Twitter, account of “Roaring Kitty” shared a meme on Sunday and went on to post 11 videos with clips from famous movies and words on screen, as of the time of writing.
GameStop stock soared in response to the posts and “Roaring Kitty's” return with shares closing up 74.40% to $30.45 Monday at market close and hitting new 52-week highs of $38.20 during the intraday session.
In 2021, GameStop stock had its moment in the spotlight with a short squeeze of epic proportions that saw retail traders buy shares and fight against hedge funds who had shorted the stock in an epic battle akin to David vs. Goliath.
The storyline was turned into several documentaries and docuseries and also inspired the book "The Antisocial Network: The GameStop Short Squeeze and the Ragtag Group of Amateur Traders That Brought Wall Street to its Knees" by Ben Mezrich.
Sony Group Corp SONY released a theatrical film, “Dumb Money,” based on Mezrich's book on Sept. 15, 2023.
With GameStop shares trading at $18.61 at the time of the theatrical release, an investor could have bought 53.73 GME shares with $1,000. That $1,000 investment would be worth $1,687.12 today, up 68.7% in eight months.
Compare that to the +16.1% return of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, which tracks the S&P 500 over the same time period.
Related Link: Who Is Roaring Kitty? Why Does His Return To Social Media Matter For GameStop Stock?
Why It's Important: The theatrical release sparked optimism that GameStop shares could rally and see old and new investors get attached to the video game stock once again.
Author Mezrich encouraged people to go to theaters and support several other "meme stocks" at the time.
The movie grossed $13.9 million domestically and $20.7 million worldwide according to data from BoxOfficeMojo. The film starred Paul Dano as Gill and also featured actors including Pete Davidson, Vincent D'Onofrio, America Ferrera, Seth Rogen, Anthony Ramos, Sebastian Stan and Nick Offerman.
The film was later released on streaming platform Netflix Inc NFLX. It had a surge in popularity in its initial release and may have contributed to a meme cryptocurrency based on GameStop trading higher.
While the film's release didn't lead to a huge rally in GameStop shares, investors who bought the stock at the time of the release and held on are now up significantly thanks to the social media return of Gill.
Gill's return saw meme stocks trade higher and several meme cryptocurrencies trade higher on Monday.
Questions remain if Gill will continue to make posts on X, return to making videos on YouTube and if the rally in GameStop stock can be sustained.
The ending of "Dumb Money" previously said Gill "retreated from public life." Based on his social media posts, he could be returning to the spotlight.
Photo: Paul Dano in “Dumb Money” via IMDb
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