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President Donald Trump’s social media platform, Truth Social (DJT), soared more than 40% in its first day of trading on the Nasdaq market Tuesday afternoon.
By midafternoon, shares of Truth Social’s parent company, Trump Media & Technology Group, were trading above $70 under the ticker symbol “DJT,” President Trump’s initials.
Last week, the company merged with special purpose vehicle Digital World Acquisition Corporation (DWAC) in a deal approved by shareholders. Before the merger, DWAC had been listed since 2021.
Trump founded Truth Social after he was banned from major social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter, the platform now known as X, in the wake of the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. Trump has since returned to the platform.
President Trump will retain approximately 60% of Truth Social, which he owns approximately 79 million shares. Based on current trading levels, this equates to a valuation of more than $5 billion.
The merger comes as the former president prepares for a 2024 presidential rematch with current commander-in-chief Joe Biden, who faces a $454 million fraud fine and grapples with campaign financing shortfalls. It was carried out while
But Trump will have to wait until he cashes out his stock.
Under the terms of the merger, shareholders have a six-month lock-up period before they can sell or transfer their shares. The only exception is if the company’s board of directors votes to take a special disposition.
According to SEC filings from Digital World, Trump Media lost $49 million in the first nine months of last year and brought in $3.4 million in revenue.
As Yahoo Finance’s Rick Newman pointed out, short interest in DWAC stock (bets that the stock price will fall rather than rise) was about 11% of outstanding shares. Of note is that the average short interest for listed companies is in the range of 3% to 4%.
alexandra canal I’m a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @allie_canal, LinkedIn, Email alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com.
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