Truth Socialthe Twitter clone of former President Donald Trump, has a fraction of the users of competitors like Reddit and X. The company has never turned a profit and just happens to be where Trump currently posts.
But on the Nasdaq, the stock exchange where Truth Social has now become a publicly traded company, there is a different story: Truth Social has become a certified meme stock. Trump supporters appear to have merged their support for the former president with the stocks themselves, and are buying in droves.
The stock quickly rose more than 40 percent after going public and trades under the ticker of Trump’s initials, DJT. The company is now valued at more than $6.8 billion. However, the value can change quickly; the stock was so volatile that it temporarily halted shortly after the IPO. The company’s financial performance is disappointing. It posted $3.3 million in revenue and lost $49 million in the first three quarters of 2023. according to legal documents.
Still, Trump’s fans on Reddit, Previous meme stocks like GameStop and cryptocurrency culture have contributed to the script, but the rhetorical formula is simple: short sellers will go down, this stock is going to the moon and won’t sell anyway.
“Let’s go baby! Trump 2024 to the moon,” one user posted on Reddit, followed by the rocket ship emoji.
In another Reddit thread, shareholders discussed at what price they would sell shares in the company. “At least wait for the election win,” posted a user tagged Diamond DWAC, a reference to “diamond hands,” a desire to hold stocks despite volatility.
“$150 maybe… but probably waiting for the launch of TMTG+ streaming and also story videos,” another replied. “Or when our founder is (again) the leader of the free world and is the most reported person in the world with the most attention on him and his platform. So maybe never‼️”
Reddit user deepfuckingbagholder speculated that the company could eventually be worth $1 trillion. When another user replied saying that valuation would be virtually impossible, deepfuckingbagholder wrote back: “This stock represents the value of the Trump brand and I personally believe it can achieve that valuation.”
Truth Social is, predictably, a hotbed of conspiracy theories. Electron denial, vaccine skepticism and the great replacement theory are all featured prominently on the site. The company has also been embroiled in controversy since it started, following Trump’s ban on Twitter following the January 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol. A former senior employee has filed a whistleblower complaint with the SEC, and other former employees have sued the company for breach of contract. Shareholders voted last week to take the company public, merging Trump Media and Technology Group with a publicly traded holding company, Digital World Acquisition Corp.
Truth Social’s outsized valuation has made Trump incredibly wealthy. His net worth rose by $4 billion to $6.5 billion, making him one of the 500 richest people in the world, according to him. calculations from Bloomberg News. Trump is not allowed to sell shares in the company for about six months, so his net worth could still drop if Truth Social’s price falls, however.
On Truth Social, a user said a prayer.
“Bless all the patriots invested in #DJT,” wrote GothamGal. “Bless this investment and make us successful so that we may do your will and bring you glory. Bless and protect our President DJT and our country. In Jesus name.”