Trump Awarded $1.8 Billion More in Trump Media Shares After Meeting Price Goals

Former President Donald Trump has significantly increased his stake in Trump Media, the parent company of the social media platform Truth Social, as revealed by a recent regulatory filing. Trump was granted an additional 36 million shares, elevating his total ownership to over 114 million shares. With the company's stock price as of Wednesday morning, these shares are valued at approximately USD 5.7 billion. This development underscores Trump's dominant position in the company, owning nearly two-thirds of its outstanding shares.

Representative image

Trump Media & Technology Group's stock has experienced a notable surge in recent weeks, closing at USD 49.93 on Tuesday. The acquisition of the new shares was contingent on the company's stock maintaining a price above USD 17.50 for 20 consecutive trading days. This milestone was achieved following Trump Media's merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp., a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), facilitating a quicker public trading route for the young company.

The merger's completion propelled the company's shares to nearly USD 80 each in intraday trading on March 26, the first trading day post-merger, before settling at USD 57.99 by close. However, less than a week later, Trump Media reported a loss of nearly USD 58.2 million for the year 2023, a stark contrast to the USD 50.5 million profit reported in 2022. This disclosure led to a more than 21 percent drop in its stock price.

Following this decline, the stock price fell to around USD 22 before witnessing a rebound in mid-April. The launch of Truth Social in February 2022 marked Trump's return to social media after being banned from major platforms like Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) in the wake of the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol. Despite being reinstated on these platforms, Trump has primarily focused on Truth Social.

In recent trading sessions, Trump Media shares have seen an uptick, rising by 2.7 percent to USD 51.30 on Wednesday morning. This fluctuation in stock performance highlights the volatile nature of the market and the significant impact of corporate developments and financial disclosures on investor sentiment.