Tangier shares take a wild ride

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Tanger Factory Outlet Centers

took a wild ride on Thursday, the latest hot potato stock caught in a short press.

According to FactSet, the mall operator has a large amount of short-term interest, currently more than 33% of its shares. This makes it one of the heaviest stocks together

GameStop

(30.2%),

Rocket Cos.

(39.7%), and

GoodRx Holdings

(27.6%), according to MarketWatch data.

Shares of Tangier (ticker: SKT) rose 22% on Thursday morning to reach a 52-week high before settling. By noon, they had completely lost steam and dropped 5.4%. The share has risen by 38% in the past year, compared to a one-time profit of 20% during the year

S&P 500.

Shopping malls were one of the weakest stocks during the pandemic, and were forced to temporarily close locations and limit the number of purchases, while also facing the budget-bound tenants with the same challenges.

Tanger was a topic on a Reddit forum called WallStreetBets. One report from Wednesday said: ‘SKT is on track to reach its highest point since May 2019 and this is the second shortest share after GME. You know what to do! “

“Let’s explode it,” the report said. “Help bring this stock to the forefront and make it the new GME.”

A spokesman for Tangier was not immediately available Thursday.

WSB on Reddit is the forum where stock lovers trade ideas. This is also a major focus of those investigating the run-up

GameStop

(GME),

AMC Entertainment Holdings

(AMC), and other stocks a few weeks ago in a trading frenzy described as retail investors going to professional short sellers.

The average rating of the six analysts who publish research on Tangier is underweight, the equivalent of a sale. According to FactSet, revenue for the full year 2020 fell by 10% to $ 370 million.

Write to liz.moyer@barrons.com