RFK Jr. invests in GameStop, aims to back 'ape retail rebellion'

Third-party presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that he invested $24,000 in GameStop (GME) and said his administration would support the "ape retail rebellion." Yahoo Finance's Rick Newman reports more on the story and what this move signals for the 2024 election.

Newman says RFK's move begs the endorsement question from "Roaring Kitty," the online meme stock trader best known for the 2021 GameStop short squeeze. Despite being a fringe candidate, RFK's investment could appeal to meme stock traders, which could siphon votes away from either Donald Trump or Joe Biden in the upcoming election.

For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Morning Brief.

This post was written by Melanie Riehl

Video Transcript

And fab shares on the move again today, third party presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Junior announcing that he invested $24,000 in the stock.

But you're still looking at losses of just about 2.5% on X.

He posted a picture saying that his administration would support, he would support the quote ape retail rebellion.

Yahoo finance's Rick Newman has more on this.

Rick.

Just give me your thoughts on this move whether or not it really matters here with voters and whether it's not, whether or not it's going to win him voters here in November.

I guess presidential candidates now have to decide whether they're pro ape or anti ape.

Uh I'm not really sure what to make of this.

I mean, it's interesting that game stock is not up, it looks like it's down a little bit in the pre market trading.

So it's not as if RFK junior is, uh, is giving a boost to this stock and he sounds like kind of a poser, doesn't he?

I mean, he sounds like he looked, looked up for, uh, four of the, um, sort of phrases you're supposed to use if you're an ape trader, a day trader, a meme stock trader.

I looked up um you know, so the question is how many, how many day traders or ST or meme stock traders are there?

And are, are they actually like a political block that's worth trying to persuade?

So I went over to Reddit, looked at the Wall Street bets channel there that has 16 million subscribers.

Uh But that doesn't mean all of them are in the United States doesn't mean they're registered voters, who knows where they actually lived.

If they don't live in swing states, it doesn't really matter.

Um It makes me wonder if, um Keith Gill A K A roar and kitty, uh the, you know, sort of, uh the main meme stock trader if he's gonna endorse a presidential candidate and if he does, will it matter.

You can imagine that RFK junior, uh maybe Trump are, are asking him, hey, how about an endorsement?

I mean, I was, you know, I've been thinking like a Taylor swift endorsement would be the thing that might be, uh you know, decisive in the, uh in the late stages of this election, but maybe it's gonna be a roaring kitty endorsement or maybe we'll even have a roaring kitty political party that comes out of this somehow.

So many interesting possibilities.

Also, maybe this won't matter at all.

You know, Rick II, I struggle to conjure up some type of serious question after seeing that graphic that we just saw on the screen here.

But I, I'll, I'll do my best here, you know.

Ok, you put it back on screen.

Great.

Uh, you know, ultimately at the end of the day when you think about this moment for RFK and even if we know anything about what his economic policies would be that investors out there could, or, or should have in mind as they go to the polls.

Do we know anything about that at this juncture?

Well, that, I think that question, Brad supposes or presupposes that he might actually have a chance of winning, which most analysts think he does not, he does not have a chance of winning.

Um The big question with RFK junior is, uh if he's on the ballot in swing states, will he take more votes from Biden or more votes from Trump?

And uh it's not entirely clear.

Um So, you know, he's positioning himself as more of a fringe candidate here uh by siding with the mean stock traders.

And, you know, they sort of um don't like the system.

It's these, it's these people who feel like the system is rigged.

Wall Street is rigged.

So I guess he, if, if he actually positions himself in that way, maybe he takes a few votes from Trump who also kind of wants to blow up the system.

But another interesting thing going on here is the Biden administration suddenly, uh is looking more friendly to crypto traders.

Uh you know, not the same as meme stock traders but kind of related.

Um And we're, we, we seem to be getting this possible uh uh ruling out of the SEC that's gonna allow uh an E ether ETF.

So it seems like people are definitely going for like the fringe investor vote here.

That's how close this election is.

Everybody wants every single vote doing everything they can to get those votes.

All right, Rick Newman.

Great stuff.

Thanks so much.

Bye guys.