Trump Media & Technology Group, the social media company owned by former President Donald Trump, surged on Friday after Trump said he has “absolutely no intention of selling” his stake in the Truth Social owner.
Shares of the stock, which trades under the ticker DJT – the same as Trump’s initials – rose $1.89, or 12%, to $17.97 on Friday. The increase helped the stock recover from a record low on September 11the day after his debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, with investors appearing to downgrade his chances of winning the US presidential election.
Trump Media & Technology Group had already suffered a months-long slump, shedding billions from its valuation and shaving approx. $4 billion from Trump’s personal holdings in the company. Trump Media’s shares have been under pressure due to the expiration of a so-called lock-in provisionswhich has so far restricted Trump and other company insiders from selling their shares.
Since Trump owns 60% of the company’s shares, selling even a portion of his stake could flood the market with available shares, potentially driving down the price. At a press conference on Friday, Trump pointed to the expiration of the lock-up as the reason his stock plummeted.
“A lot of people think the reason it’s down is a lot of people think I’m going to sell, and if I do sell, it’s not going to be the same,” Trump said. “But I have absolutely no intention of selling.”
Lock-ups are a common restriction on Wall Street, designed to prohibit large investors from dumping their shares in a company soon after the company goes public. That’s because large stock sales by insiders can cause a company’s stock to drop.
Even with Friday’s bump, Trump Media & Technology Group’s share price is still 77% off its March peak of $79.38.