A ticket booth at an AMC in California. Shares of the movie-theater chain fell 15% on Monday.
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Shares of meme stock favorites AMC Entertainment and GameStop
both tumbled on Monday, a possible blow to retail investors who plowed a net $32.5 million and $4.2 million into the stocks last week, according to Vanda Research.
AMC shares (ticker: AMC) fell 15% to their lowest close since May, while GameStop (GME) shares fell 14% to their lowest close since March. Both have been under pressure over the past month, falling more than 30%. The Omicron variant of coronavirus has revived fears that new lockdowns could keep moviegoers away from theaters.
AMC’s CEO and chief financial officer recently sold a combined $10.2 million of stock, adding to the pressure.
GameStop reported widening losses but higher-than-expected sales for the third quarter earlier this month, trying to transition to selling digital downloads as it improves its customer service. Management didn’t offer financial targets and wouldn’t answer analysts’ questions.
Earlier this year, the two stocks became the favorites of a group of retail investors who goaded each other on Reddit, forcing a short squeeze in several stocks. Even now, AMC’s shares are 10 times higher than at the end of 2020, and GameStop’s shares are nearly seven times higher.
Investors on social media platform Reddit said they were cheering the recent declines in AMC, GameStop, and other meme stocks, buying up more shares after the declines.
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