WPG - Why Shares of Tanger Macerich and Washington Prime Jumped as Much as 23% Today
After a fairly uneventful morning, shares of Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (NYSE: SKT) rose a dramatic 23% in afternoon trading on Tuesday. And it wasn't the only mall-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) to rocket higher, with The Macerich Company (NYSE: MAC) and Washington Prime Group (NYSE: WPG) also getting in on the act, rising roughly 23% and 15%, respectively. None of these REITs put out any information that would have produced this kind of swift and synchronized rally. There was something else afoot.
Over the past week or so, GameStop has garnered a huge amount of attention for the large and swift gains it has made. The reason is that short-sellers are reportedly being forced to cover their positions in what is known as a short squeeze . Essentially, investors sold stock they didn't own in the hope of buying it at a lower price to close out their position and book a profit in what's sort of like the reverse of a "normal" trade (in this case, sell high, buy low). But the stock didn't go down, it went up.
Image source: Getty Images.
For further details see:
Why Shares of Tanger, Macerich, and Washington Prime Jumped as Much as 23% Today