By Alexandra Ulmer
RANCHO PALOS VERDES, California (Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Friday he will not sell his shares in the company that owns his Truth Social platform when selling limits are lifted in the coming days, sending shares surging after a recent sale.
Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group rose as much as 30% after his comments, before closing the day with a 12% gain.
Trump owns about 57% of Trump Media, whose shares plunged this week after his televised debate with Democratic rival Vice President Kamala Harris.
Friday’s rise follows weeks of steady declines ahead of key dates this month when Trump and other company insiders will be allowed to sell their shares.
“No, I’m not selling,” the former president said in response to a question from Reuters. “I’m not leaving. I love it. I love it.”
Trump Media saw its value rise to almost $10 billion after its stock market listing in March. Trump Media shares are popular among retail traders and are seen as a speculative bet on his chances for a second four-year term as president.
However, since listing, Trump Media’s shares have lost most of their value, with losses widening in recent weeks after President Joe Biden abandoned his re-election bid and Trump lost a lead in opinion polls ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election.
Under terms of Trump Media’s listing, Trump and other insiders will be allowed to sell shares starting later this month, potentially flooding the market with additional shares.
If the stock price remains at or above $12 for 20 trading days from August 22, Trump will be free to sell shares from September 20. Otherwise, he will be eligible to sell shares starting September 26.
The stock closed at $17.97 on Friday after Trump’s comments, making his stake worth about $2 billion. Forbes estimates Trump’s wealth at $3.7 billion.
Trump Media’s revenue is equal to that of two Starbucks (NASDAQ:) coffee shops, and strategists say its $3.6 billion stock market value is separate from its day-to-day operations. It lost $869,900 in the most recent quarter ended June 30.
“There are no fundamentals behind this company. It has no path to profitability. It is only driven by commentary, by hopes and dreams,” said Dennis Dick, a trader at Triple D Trading.
The impending expiration of the lockup on Trump’s stocks is “something that a lot of people on the Street have been looking at for weeks, if not since its inception,” Jay Woods, chief strategist at Freedom Capital Markets, said ahead of the statement from Trump. that he would not sell.
A New York judge earlier this month postponed sentencing Trump in his hush-money criminal case until November 12, after the election, months after the US Supreme Court’s landmark decision on presidential immunity, putting pressure on legal costs at least case was alleviated in the short term.
The Nasdaq stock exchange halted trading in Trump Media’s stock for two five-minute periods after Trump’s comments, a common occurrence during periods of volatility.
“What right do they have to do this?” Trump later posted on Truth Social, while also threatening to move his company’s listing to the New York Stock Exchange.
