Tech

Top hedge fund boosted GameStop, AMC stakes before ‘Roaring Kitty’ meme stock rally: filing

One of the top hedge funds in the world bought a sizable stake in GameStop just a few weeks before shares surged as much as 400% in the latest “meme stock” rally, a regulatory filing showed Wednesday.

Renaissance Technologies, the quant firm founded by legendary investor Jim Simons, who died last week, bought just over 1 million shares of GameStop during the quarter ending in March, according to the securities filing.

Assuming no changes in the position, the GameStop stake would be worth nearly $33.5 million through Wednesday — up from a value of about $13 million as of the end of last quarter.

GameStop and AMC have surged in value in recent trading sessions. REUTERS

The struggling video game retailer’s stock spiked 400% at its Tuesday high — boosted mainly by the return of “Roaring Kitty.”

The retail day trader, whose real name is Keith Gill, played a leading role in the 2021 meme-stock frenzy — when mom-and-pop investors poured into firms like GameStop and AMC to squeeze short-sellers.

RenTech also had increased its stake in the floundering movie theater chain by 78% to about 8.7 million shares during the first quarter, according to the filing.

That position was worth more than $46 million as of Wednesday trading – up from about $32 million last quarter.

On Wednesday, the meme-stock rally fizzled, with GameStop and AMC plunging by 19% and 20%, respectively.

Nonetheless, their unexpected rise this week could still give RenTech a massive windfall.

The firm makes lightning-quick trades using algorithms, which can result in major changes to its stock portfolio each quarter.


Jim Simons
Renaissance Technologies founder Jim Simons passed away last week. Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

Simons, the market guru and mathematician, a died last Friday at age 86.

Gill, who also goes by the moniker “DeepF–kingValue” on Reddit, reignited interest in the struggling companies after he shared a series of memes on X earlier this week.

The posts, his first public interaction since 2021, included a meme of a video game player leaning forward in his chair and a series of movie clips from popular TV shows and movies such as Marvel’s “Avengers” and “Breaking Bad.”

The X account @TheRoaringKitty continued posting movie clips on Wednesday, but Gill has yet to personally reveal his next move.

With Post wires

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