GameStop Corp. tumbled as much as 34% as bearish investors appeared to cover their positions while retail traders flocked to other corners of the market like silver.
The video-game retailer fell for the second time in three sessions as shares of silver miners and AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. became the focus for retail investors and Reddit users.
The shares traded as low as $213.07 at 10:30 a.m in New York, before trading was halted.
GameStop’s decline came as short interest for the company plunged to 53% of its available shares, from more than 140% just last month, according to data from financial analytics firm S3 Partners.
BloombergRestrictions on the amount of shares investors can buy using the popular trading app Robinhood Markets Inc. combined with a lower number of shares sold short could pressure Grapevine, Texas-based GameStop’s rise.
Backlash against short-sellers including Citron Research had been a key rallying point for retail traders using Reddit to communicate about their bets. Reddit users urged fellow investors to hold onto their stock despite limits to add to their positions with Robinhood users limited to purchasing just 1 share in GameStop.
