Richard Mashaal and Brian Gonic’s hedge fund Senvest Management LLC earned $ 700 million in WallStreetBets-powered rally GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
What happened: The two began buying the shares of the video game sold in September and were riding on the GameStop rocket when the stock soared from less than $ 10 to above $ 400, the Journal reported.
“When it started, we thought something was going through here,” says Mashaal, adding, “But we have no idea how crazy this thing would get.”
Senvest has reportedly become curious about GameStop after seeing a presentation by the new GameStop CEO at a consumer investment conference in January 2020.
The hedge fund firm spoke to management and noted activities around the company, including the involvement of Chewy Inc. (NYSE: CHWY) co-founder Ryan Cohen.
“It’s not just small people here on the long side. There are big players playing on both sides of GameStop, ”says Thomas Peterffy, chairman of Interactive Brokers Group Inc, reports the Journal.
Why it matters: GameStop appears to be the most profitable investment of the hedge fund in terms of earnings dollars and its internal rate of return.
The value of Senvest’s flagship fund rose from $ 1.6 billion at the end of 2020 to $ 2.4 billion. In January, the fund returned 38.4% after fees, according to the Journal.
Hedge fund firm Mudrick Capital Management MP earned $ 200 million on another Reddit investor favorite AMC Entertainment Holdings Ing (NYSE: AMC).
Melvin Capital, the hedge fund at the heart of the GameStop saga, lost 53% in January by betting against the dealer.
The recent dip in Reddit shares hurt members of WallStreetBets with Keith Patrick Gill, better known as Deep F — ing Value and Roaring Kitty, losing more than $ 13.6 million on Tuesday on its GameStop investment.
Price action: GameStop shares fell 3.82% in the after-hours session to $ 88.88 on Wednesday after closing 2.68% higher at $ 92.41 in the regular session.
Related link: Who are the GameStop winners? Ryan Cohen, ‘Roaring Kitty’ and others who earned a fortune
Licensed image: Ardfern via Wikimedia
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