This is a case of mixed signals.
Confused traders increased an obscure medical device’s share price by more than 400 percent in one day after Elon Musk urged them to use a messaging app of the same name.
The bizarre rally began after billionaire Tesla chief said its 42 million Twitter fans to “Use signal” on Thursday, apparently referring to the mobile app that allows users to exchange encrypted messages.
But investors prefer shares of Signal Advance Inc. purchased, a small outfit in Texas that uses devices to detect various health problems.
The company’s shares, which were traded over the counter, rose to $ 3.76 from 60 cents on the day of Musk’s day. Shares nearly doubled to $ 7.19 on Friday and then soared 438 percent to $ 38.70 on Monday, despite news reports of the apparent mess.
Signal Advance did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning. CEO Chris Hymel told Bloomberg News that the company ‘strongly recommends[s] people exercise their caution and always invest with care. ”
Investors who want to buy shares in the Signal app have no luck – it is the property of the Signal Foundation, an approximately three-year-old non-profit organization.
The app has seen a surge in recent days since WhatsApp’s competitor released an update to its privacy policy that allows it to share user data with Facebook, its parent company.
About 810,000 users around the world installed Signal on Sunday, nearly 18 times the number seen on January 6, the day of WhatsApp’s privacy change, according to data from research firm AppTopia.
Signal warned investors that it had “absolutely nothing to do” with Signal Advance’s shares as the latter’s share price exploded.
“It’s understandable that people want to invest in Signal’s record growth, but it’s not us,” the app said said on Twitter. “We are an independent 501c3 and our only investment is in your privacy.”
With Post threads