(Bloomberg) — Investors snapped up shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp., the blank-check firm set to merge with Donald Trump’s social media company, after the former president hinted at plans to make another bid for the White House.
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The special-purpose acquisition company rallied as much as 66% in the biggest one-day rally since the initial pop when the merger was announced as millions of shares changed hands. Warrants tied to the SPAC surged 122%, while Phunware Inc., a software company that worked on Trump’s re-election campaign, jumped 25%.
Digital World’s surge accelerated as the session went on as more than 23 million shares changed hands by 2:45 p.m. in New York, nearly 30-times the activity seen on average over the past month. Call option volume outpaced those for puts on the stock at a more than 2:1 ratio, with calls that expire on Friday with strike prices of $30 and $25 the most actively traded.
The gains for companies linked to Trump came after he repeated a boast that he’s leading in surveys for the GOP nomination. Trump is tentatively planning to announce his 2024 campaign during the week after US midterm elections, people familiar with the matter have told Bloomberg.
Digital World has been volatile as the SPAC’s sponsors fail to corral its primarily retail trader base to vote on an extension to the deadline for its merger with Trump Media & Technology Group. Shares were down 70% from a year ago through Friday’s close amid weak demand for Truth Social and as investor weigh how Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter Inc. could affect its future.
The stock has been a favorite among the retail-trading crowd since the tie-up was announced last year. While their buying has slowed, they’ve driven the SPAC to be the top performer of its kind. With Monday’s bump it trades at a more than 170% premium to the $10.20 holders would get if the deal collapses.
“Any Trump news is going to boost interest,” said Matthew Tuttle, chief executive officer at Tuttle Capital Management. “If Trump becomes president again that could be good for DWAC, at least short term. Longer term, have to figure that if his enemies want to get him then something related to DWAC may be low-hanging fruit.”
Retail traders were actively discussing Digital World ahead of Monday’s session. The company’s ticker was trending on Stocktwits and was among the most mentioned companies on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum, rivaling mentions for retail trader favorite Tesla Inc. Despite the touts, trading was modest among Fidelity customers with buy orders narrowly outpacing those to sell.
Short covering could also be driving some of the strength, an action where investors close some of their negative bets as shares rise. Nearly 13% of Digital World shares available for trading are currently sold short, according to S3 Partners data.
(Updates share movement throughout, adds detail in third paragraph.)
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