GameStop (GME) stock experienced a sudden resurgence on Monday, May 13, 2024, as shares soared over 90% following the return of Keith Gill, a prominent figure in the 2020-2021 meme stock frenzy. Gill, known by his online persona “Roaring Kitty,” took to social media platform X on Sunday evening, breaking a nearly three-year silence since his last post in 2021.
TLDR
- Keith Gill, known as “Roaring Kitty,” returned to social media after a 3-year hiatus, causing GameStop (GME) stock to surge over 90% on Monday morning.
- GameStop shares were halted multiple times due to volatility following Gill’s posts on X (formerly Twitter).
- Gill was a key figure in the 2020-2021 meme stock frenzy, having invested $53,000 in GameStop in 2019, which was worth an estimated $48 million at the peak of the surge.
- The online retail trading community, particularly on the WallStreetBets subreddit, expressed excitement about Gill’s return and the subsequent rise in GameStop’s stock price.
Gill’s initial post featured a meme of a person playing video games, leaning forward in their chair to indicate a more serious approach to the game.
— Roaring Kitty (@TheRoaringKitty) May 13, 2024
This cryptic message was enough to ignite a frenzy among retail traders, particularly those in the online community WallStreetBets, which played a central role in the original GameStop surge.
As the market opened on Monday, GameStop shares quickly skyrocketed, triggering multiple trading halts due to the extreme volatility.
Gill followed up his initial post with two more, featuring short videos that nodded to his absence and return, using clips from popular movies and TV shows such as “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Breaking Bad.”
Prior to his rise to fame during the meme stock craze, Gill had invested $53,000 in GameStop shares in 2019, convinced that the retailer was undervalued.
At the height of the surge, his position was worth an estimated $48 million. Alongside other key figures like activist investor Ryan Cohen, who is now GameStop’s CEO, Gill’s enthusiasm for the stock helped drive the unprecedented online excitement and subsequent price action.
The WallStreetBets community celebrated Gill’s return, with numerous top posts on the subreddit discussing his recent activity and the impact on GameStop’s stock price.
Both “GameStop” and “GME” trended on X as users shared their excitement and investment plans.
Despite the significant surge, GameStop shares remained well below their all-time high of $120.75 reached on January 28, 2021. However, the stock has more than doubled in value since the beginning of May, trading at $28.24 as of 11:45 a.m. ET on Monday.
As the news of Gill’s return and GameStop’s stock movement continues to spread, it remains to be seen whether this sudden resurgence will have the same lasting impact as the original meme stock frenzy.
Market participants and regulators alike will be closely monitoring the situation to determine if this is a temporary blip or the beginning of another retail trader-driven market disruption.
