HOUSTON — During a pandemic, the brick and mortar video game store GameStop has turned into a rising star on Wall Street.
A few weeks ago, investors on the social media platform Reddit started talking about why GameStop is a good investment. Users on the subreddit “wallstreetbets” started buying up the stock, driving up the price.
“I will say this is officially my first investment and it’s panned out pretty well so far,” said Cody Noel, a Robinhood investor in Houston. “If the bags under my eyes tell a story, I’m just on pins and needles. My wife is like, ‘Stop pacing!' I woke up this morning, and my calves hurt.”
Casey Crow is another Houston investor who owns GameStop.
“I’m a blue-collar investor. When you see something like this, it’s one of those all-in type things,” Crow said.
The retail investors say making money isn’t the only perk. They feel they’re taking on high profile short-sellers who bet against the video game company. Some hedge funds stand to lose billions on the stock.
“We’ve caught them completely exposed. They’re so far in the red, they’re going to have to cover. When they do, you’re about to see some crazy stuff. You ain’t seen nothing yet, trust me,” Crow said.
He thinks GameStop’s stock isn’t even close to hitting its peak. A lot of Wall Street betters agree.
“This is not gains from a stock. This is a downward transfer of wealth. It’s to that degree,” Noel said. “We absolutely as a community are proving that the old way of investing – going through a broker, it’s not accessible to the average person – that’s done. That’s absolutely done.”