Trump Media shares drop after lock-up expires

Investing.com -- Shares in Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ:DJT ) slipped in early US trading on Friday, extending sharp losses seen in the Truth Social owner throughout this week, following the expiration of a lock-up on insider shares.

Shortly after the US market open, the stock had dropped by more than 6%. It has dipped by around 18% over the prior four sessions, leaving it 80% under its peak reached in April.

Restrictions on insider sales expired on Thursday following the close of markets.

However, only about a third of the shares in the company, which is 57% owned by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and went public via a so-called blank-check merger in March, are available for trading. This means that any transaction is likely to have a heavy influence on the stock, which has become popular with retail traders and is viewed as a bet on Trump's chances of winning a second term in the White House in November.

At one point after its listing on public markets, Trump Media's value had soared to almost $10 billion.

But worries that Trump and other company insiders may exit their positions have weighed on the shares in recent weeks, even though the former president has said that he has no plans to offload his shares and reiterated his "love" for the business.

"I’m not leaving. [...] I think it’s great," Trump said, according to a Reuters report.

Trump currently has a stake worth $1.6 billion in the firm -- far below a value of $6.2 billion as recently as four months ago.

Meanwhile, Patrick Orlando, the Miami businessman whose Arc Global Investments is the largest investor in the special purpose acquisition company Digital World Acquisition Corporation, and United Atlantic Ventures both own stakes of about 11% in Trump Media.

(Reuters contributed reporting.)

Source: Investing.com