Social Capital co-founder and CEO Chamath Palihapitiya has made a name for himself identifying excellent high-growth companies and taking them public using special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs).
Now, the noted investor is looking to profit from the recent gyrations of GameStop (GME 4.28%) stock. In a post on Twitter (TWTR) Tuesday, Palihapitiya said, "Lots of [GameStop] talk, soooooo .... We bought Feb $115 calls on [GameStop] this morning. Let's gooooooo!!!!!!!!"
Image source: Getty Images.
Buying calls is an options strategy investors can use when they believe a stock will rise. Palihapitiya's position suggests that he believes the stock could gain as much as 50% from Monday's close -- and do it in less than a month.
The post was a follow-up to one on Monday in which Palihapitiya said, "Tell me what to buy tomorrow and if you convince me I'll throw a few 100 k's at it to start. Ride or die."
GameStop has been a battleground stock in recent weeks. Shares were selling for as little as $17.25 earlier this month, but several catalysts conspired to send them soaring.
News broke on Jan. 11 that activist investor and Chewy (CHWY 3.64%) co-founder Ryan Cohen and two of his associates had gained seats on GameStop's board. Cohen's firm, RC Ventures, had amassed a 13% stake in GameStop last year, making it the company's second-largest shareholder. Cohen's success with online retailer Chewy has given investors hope that he could help steer GameStop toward similar e-commerce results.
The drama took another turn late last week when a tug-of-war broke out between noted short-seller Citron Research and a group of investors on the subreddit r/WallStreetBets. Citron editor Andrew Left eventually threw in the towel on Friday as the short squeeze that the online group had sparked continued.
GameStop has gained more than 375% so far this year and was recently trading above $100 as investors bet on a turnaround for the company. Palihapitiya has now joined the fray.
