Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group rose more than 30 percent on July 15, two days after the attempted assassination of former President and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, the company’s majority shareholder.
Shares, which rose by about 50 percent in premarket trading, closed at $40.58, up almost 31.4 percent.
Former President Trump, who holds a stake of 65 percent in the company, survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania over the weekend. A bullet struck the former president’s ear, and he was rushed from the scene.
One rallygoer was killed, and two were seriously injured.
The gunman was killed by law enforcement officials, and the shooting is under investigation.
Devin Nunes, a former congressman who now serves as Trump Media’s CEO, said in a statement that he was thankful former President Trump survived the assassination attempt.
“The situation demands a fast, thorough federal investigation to determine all the circumstances of this cowardly attack and to identify if any additional persons were involved,” he said in the statement.
“I also call for the federal government to provide any security resources requested by President Trump to guarantee his safety. America will overcome this despicable shooting and together, our nation will endure.”
Former President Trump said on Truth Social that he will be attending the Republican National Convention, which starts on July 15.
“Based on yesterday’s terrible events, I was going to delay my trip to Wisconsin, and the Republican National Convention, by two days, but have just decided that I cannot allow a ‘shooter,’ or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else,” he wrote.
The former president was seen with blood on his face after being struck by a bullet during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13. Secret Service agents surrounded the former president as he raised a fist in a signal to the crowd of his supporters amid the bedlam following the shooting.
Trump Media was launched after major social media companies kicked former President Trump off their platforms in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol.
The company says its mission is to “end Big Tech’s assault on free speech by opening up the Internet and giving people their voices back.”
The company’s main product is Truth Social, a competitor to social media platforms such as X, formerly known as Twitter.
Trump Media went public in March, after a merger with a blank check company. Trump Media stock at one point hit nearly $80 per share, but later plummeted to less than $23 a share.
Trump Media reported a net loss of $327.6 million in the first quarter of this year, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
