Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. climbed 92 per cent on Monday to rack up a record one-day advance as trading volume for the beleaguered home-goods retailer surged.
About 240 million shares changed hands, which is more than three times the average over the past month. Bed Bath & Beyond shares triggered at least two volatility-related trading halts during the ascent.
The stock, which attracted the attention of meme-stock traders, has been volatile in recent weeks since the company indicated it is preparing for a potential bankruptcy filing. Bed Bath & Beyond has gained more than 130 per cent so far this year.
Bed Bath & Beyond, AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. and GameStop Corp. were among the stocks to have their tickers trending on Stocktwits while mentions across Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum skyrocketed alongside the stock prices. AMC closed up 12 per cent while GameStop rose 7.2 per cent. Despite the touts, trading was relatively modest among Fidelity customers, with Bed Bath & Beyond sell orders outpacing those to buy.
Short covering could also be driving some of the strength, where investors close some of their negative bets as shares rise. More than one-fifth of the trio’s shares available for trading are currently sold short, according to S3 Partners data.
Other more speculative corners of the market like artificial intelligence-linked stocks also jumped on Monday, while the S&P 500 Index fell.
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