{"id":338145,"date":"2021-09-11T14:50:34","date_gmt":"2021-09-11T11:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/how-gamestop-stocks-made-ordinary-americans-go-for-broke\/"},"modified":"2021-09-11T14:50:34","modified_gmt":"2021-09-11T11:50:34","slug":"how-gamestop-stocks-made-ordinary-americans-go-for-broke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/how-gamestop-stocks-made-ordinary-americans-go-for-broke\/","title":{"rendered":"#How GameStop stocks made ordinary Americans go for broke"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#How <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Game<\/a>Stop stocks made ordinary Americans go for broke<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n        <\/aside>\n<p>Jeremy was a 22-year-old college senior who took his $6,000 textbook money and turned it into $109,977.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Kim was a single mom and psychiatric nurse hoping to pay for her kid\u2019s braces only to get caught up in a much bigger search for meaning.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sara was a pregnant 30-year-old hair-salon worker who used her stimulus money to be part of the hype, only to lose nearly all of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Win or lose, all three people were among the thousands of ordinary Americans who bought into last winter\u2019s headline-grabbing GameStop \u201cstonk\u201d frenzy with a higher mission in mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey bought GameStop in an attempt to stick it to the man,\u201d said Ben Mezrich, whose new book, \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Antisocial-Network-GameStop-Squeeze-Amateur\/dp\/1538707551?tag=nypost-20\">The Antisocial Network<\/a>\u201d (Grand Central Publishing), is out now. (Mezrich has changed some of his subjects\u2019 names to protect their privacy.)\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The hype all started with a 34-year-old broker named Keith Gill. From his basement computer in Brockton, Mass., Gill wrote regular posts on a sub<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Reddit<\/a> forum called <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/wallstreetbets\/\">WallStreetBets<\/a>, touting what he believed were undervalued stocks, using the handle \u201cRoaring Kitty.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In fall of 2019, Gill was all in on GameStop, buying $53,000 at around $5 a share. Through research, he had discovered that nearly every share of the stock was being sold short \u2014 meaning it had been borrowed by investors who believed the price would fall and they could later resell for a profit.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/game-stop.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1024\" alt=\"By January 2021, GameStop\u2019s share price had exploded to by 6,900 percent. \" class=\"wp-image-19418034\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/game-stop.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/game-stop.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/game-stop.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>By January 2021, GameStop\u2019s share price had exploded by 6,900 percent. <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>But Gill knew that if the stock price rose instead of falling, a so-called \u201cshort squeeze\u201d would ensue, putting pressure on those who borrowed the shares to buy more to return to their lenders \u2014 thereby forcing the share price even higher.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would be like watching investors trying to get out of a burning building, through a single, narrow door,\u201d Mezrich writes. \u201cThe stock would rocket.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>His posts on Reddit won converts, and by January 2021, GameStop\u2019s share price had exploded to nearly $350 \u2014 a 6,900 percent increase.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-nypost-small-post\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"231\" height=\"347\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231\" alt=\"By posting regularly on Reddit, Keith Gill hyped up GameStop stock and made the share price soar.\" class=\"wp-image-19418057\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=462 462w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=347 346w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=116 115w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/roaring-kitty.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\"\/><figcaption>By posting regularly on Reddit, Keith Gill hyped up GameStop stock and made the share price soar.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Elder Ordonez\/Splash<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a>.com<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Jeremy invested all his savings in GameStop, buying 200 shares at an average price of $15.44, then another 150 at $19.20 for a total investment of nearly $6,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sara was sick of the big Wall Street players getting rich while regular people got the shaft. She bought 10 shares at $354 for an investment of $3,540.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe, finally, it would be her turn,\u201d she thought.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Kim had lost money on stocks before. But as the GameStop hype grew, she feared missing out and cautiously invested $1,600 at $16 a share, buying 100 shares.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>After that, she checked her phone constantly, watching as the stock price doubled in a day and continued to rise. She was pleased with the stock surge, but even more thrilled to earn the respect of her teen son.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGetting cool points from a teenager was almost as good as getting accolades from Jim Cramer,\u201d Mezrich writes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>GameStop eventually rocketed to more than $400 a share, with the Reddit mob claiming it was heading to $1,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-nypost-small-post\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"231\" height=\"349\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231\" alt=\"The Antisocial Network book cover\" class=\"wp-image-19417992\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=462 462w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=347 346w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=231 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=116 115w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/the-antisocial-network-1.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 231px) 100vw, 231px\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Instead, on Jan. 28, trading became too frenzied. Robinhood, an investing <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a> used by many GameStop investors, halted trading and the share price suddenly took a swift dive.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Jeremy, whose family had been begging him to sell for weeks, finally relented and sold at $314 a share, turning his investment into a six-figure windfall.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Kim still hasn\u2019t decided whether to hold, sell or even buy more. Today, GameStop is at $178 a share, so if she sold now, she\u2019d still make quite a bit.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHer world might always be unfair, and her life might always be messy. But a big part of her liked messy,\u201d the author writes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sara, meanwhile, had bought too high. But, even though her investment had bombed, she still took pride in being part of the movement.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHer ten shares of GameStop were sitting at one-sixth the price she\u2019d bought them at,\u201d Mezrich writes. \u201cBut they were still hers.\u201d\u00a0\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more News articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2021\/09\/11\/how-gamestop-stocks-made-ordinary-americans-go-for-broke\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#How GameStop stocks made ordinary Americans go for broke&#8221; Jeremy was a 22-year-old college senior who took his $6,000 textbook money and turned it into $109,977.\u00a0 Kim was a single mom and psychiatric nurse hoping to pay for her kid\u2019s braces only to get caught up in a much bigger search for meaning.\u00a0 Sara was&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":338146,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/keith-patrick-gill.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[115806,5069,72388,70359],"class_list":["post-338145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-9-11-21","tag-economy","tag-stock-market","tag-stocks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=338145"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/338145\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/338146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=338145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=338145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=338145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}