Rocket Companies into orbit as joins Reddit meme-stocks

Reddit traders buying up a stock called Rocket Companies Inc (NYSE:RKT) may seem strenuously on-the-nose, nonetheless, it rose some 71% on Tuesday and has been indicated up as much as 10% higher in Wednesday’s premarket. Likely adding to the blindingly obvious attraction for the millennials on the r/Wallstreetbet forum – where a rocket ‘emoji’ icon signals that a user believes a stock is going up - is the fact that Rocket Companies is a digital mortgage provider that purports to “help clients achieve the dream of homeownership” and it is ‘under attack’ from short-selling hedge funds. Thematically it likely resonates with the social and cultural leanings of the Reddit community group which has described itself as ‘like 4chan found a Bloomberg terminal’. Evidently, the retail investors and meme-stock brigade are attempting another short-squeeze of the ilk that saw GameStop soar through the early months of 2021. The short interest in Rocket shares reportedly stood at around 46% of the stock’s float as of Monday, which saw the mortgage firm marked with the fifth largest short position in the banking sector. Rocket Companies stock surged US$17.30 or 71.19% on Tuesday to close at US$41.60, and early in premarket the price is marked at US$44.20 per share.