Shares in Trump Media have fallen to new lows on the first day of trading as its largest shareholder, former President Donald Trump, is free to sell his stake in the company behind the Truth Social platform
Shares in Trump Media & The technology group fell to an all-time low at the opening bell on Friday, the first day of trading that its largest shareholder, former President Donald Trump, is free to sell his share in the company behind the Truth Social platform.
Shares of Trump Media, commonly referred to as TMTG, fell nearly 7% to $13.73, valuing the company at less than $3 billion. Trump owns more than half of it.
Trump and other company insiders have been unable to cash in on the highly volatile stock because of standard lock-up agreements that prevent major stakeholders from selling stakes for a set period after a company goes public. TMTG began trading publicly in March.
Trump owns nearly 115 million shares in the company, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Based on TMTG’s stock price early Friday, Trump’s holdings are worth, at least on paper, about $1.6 billion. It is usually not in the interests of the major stakeholders to even attempt to sell large portions of their shares as this may risk a wider sale.
Since the IPO, shares of Trump Media have swung wildly, often depending on news related to Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.
A week ago, the company’s shares jumped nearly 12% after Trump said he would not sell shares when the lockdown lifted. The stock fell more than 10% after debate earlier this month between Trump and the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris. In mid-July, stocks climbed more than 31% in the first day of trading after the first assassination attempt on Trump.
Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. is now worth significantly less than several months ago. When the company did its thing debut on the Nasdaq in March, the stock hit a high of $79.38.
Truth social came into existence after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook following the riot at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Based in Sarasota, Florida, Trump Media has been losing money and struggling to bring in revenue. The lost nearly $58.2 million last year while generating just $4.1 million in revenue, according to regulatory filings.