Shares of Trump Media and Technology Group were flat in midday trading Friday after President-elect Donald Trump transferred all of his shares into a revocable trust, according to a regulatory filing.
Trump transferred nearly all of his 115 million shares — worth about $4 billion on paper — to the company’s parent company. Truth Social Networking Site as a “good gift” to the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. Trump’s shares are more than half of the company’s shares.
It is unclear why Trump transferred the stock. Donald Trump Jr. is the sole trustee and has sole voting and investment power over all securities owned by the trust.
Shares of Trump Media were down about 2% midday at $34.68 apiece. On Friday, they fell about 6%.
Shares of Trump Media have been highly volatile since the company began trading in March. They hit intraday highs near $80 on their first day of trading, and then in September, Trump and others were finally allowed to sell shares after standard lock-up agreements expired. Trump has not sold any shares in the company.
The company’s stock price has fluctuated wildly on Trump-related news — both good and bad. They fell in a quiet money trial after Trump’s conviction in May, then rose after the first assassination attempt against Trump in July. They rebounded after winning re-election in November, even though the company posted a third-quarter loss of $19.2 million.
Trump founded Trump Media after he was banned from Twitter and Facebook following the riots at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
