Former President Donald Trump boasted that Tuesday’s faceoff with Vice President Kamala Harris was his best debate, but shareholders of Trump Media & Technology Group were less enthusiastic.
The parent company of Trump’s Truth Social social media network saw its shares plummet 17% at the opening bell, taking the stock to a record low on Wednesday. The company’s shares were still trading down about 13% at $16.19 as of midday Wednesday. As recently as March, the stock traded at $66 and hit a high during the past year of $79.38.
Trump Media’s stock nosedive is likely tied to Trump’s performance during Tuesday’s debate with Harris, during which the vice president was able to get under his skin by mentioning the crowd size at his rallies, his reputation among U.S. military and foreign leaders, previous bankruptcies, and his felony conviction. On the New Zealand-based online political and financial market PredictIt, Kamala Harris pulled away from Trump as bettors felt more confident she would win the upcoming presidential election.
Wednesday’s drop in Trump Media shares is the latest example of just how tethered the company’s value is to the former president. The stock skyrocketed 30% after Trump survived an assassination attempt and again briefly following Trump’s first debate with President Joe Biden.
Yet, since Biden stood aside and Harris stepped up to take his place in the presidential race, Trump Media’s shares have lost more than 50% of their value.
The plummeting price of Trump Media is bad news for Trump, who owns just under 60% of the company, and has already seen the value of his shares decrease by $4 billion. Wednesday’s collapse shed another $260 million, bringing the paper value of his holdings to about $1.9 billion.
Trump’s shares are suddenly worth much less just as he approaches the date where he will get the go-ahead to start selling, although he has not confirmed he will definitely do so. Because of a 180-day lockup period for company insiders, Trump is prohibited from selling shares until later in September, although it could be as early as next week.
Offloading some of his billions in shares could be helpful for Trump, whose legal bills have piled up as he faces more criminal cases. Last week, a judge postponed sentencing in Trump’s so-called “hush money trial” until after the November presidential election.