For the first time in almost 30 years, part of Donald Trump’s business empire has gone public. Trading started with a bang.

Trump Media & Technology Group, the owner of struggling social media platform Truth Social, is began its long-delayed journey as a public company at Tuesday’s opening bell under the ticker symbol “DJT.”

The stock surged about 56% at the open, to $78, and trading was briefly halted for volatility. Trump Media shares have since stabilized at around $70, marking a 40% increase from Monday’s close.

Wall Street is assigning Trump Media an eye-popping valuation of around $13 billion — a price tag that experts warn is untethered to reality.

The skyrocketing share price comes despite the fact that Trump Media is burning through cash; piling up losses; and its main product, Truth Social, is losing users.

“This is a very unusual situation. The stock is pretty much divorced from fundamentals,” said Jay Ritter, a finance professor at the University of Florida’s Warrington College of Business, who has been studying initial public offerings (IPOs) for over 40 years.

  • Schadrach
    5•9 months ago

    Trump can’t cash out shares for 6 months. So now they have to keep the price inflated for 6 months.

    Could be some folks find value in social media for a group preselected for gullibility.

    • @UnderpantsWeevil
      4•9 months ago

      Trump can’t cash out shares for 6 months. So now they have to keep the price inflated for 6 months.

      Unless they’re just unloading their shares onto Rubes. In which case, they only need other people to buy-and-hold at the inflated rate.

      • Ann Archy
        2•9 months ago

        This is not aimed at you or anyone particular just my thoughts, but it’s amazing how uneducated people are when it comes to finance. I know I am, and every day I learn a little more of how gullible I’ve been. I did live on the streets selling drugs though, and once you see how that game is played, you see how every fucking game is played. You do this and he does that and they do this and that for you and we all come out on top, right? Throw a couple of million dollar lawyers, accountants, legal experts, think tanks, connections to the monetary and industrial elite of the world, and stack the SEC with 92% former and future employees of yours, and suddenly the game makes sense without any need to get the academics.

        It’s not about the math, it’s about who you know.

        If anyone is skeptical then remember exactly what Clump was convicted of and what his punishment was.

        Now he’s crowdfunding that punishment away, and people think that somehow it’s impossible that it’s a scam because of financial regulations? Bruhs…