Weber Inc. (NASDAQ:WEBR) shares went up in smoke on Wednesday, falling 16.69% at its lows alongside other meme names like Bed Bath & Beyond Inc (NASDAQ:BBBY).
Bed Bath & Beyond dropped 20% after a number of unfavorable news items came out on the retailer. Worries struck retail investors chasing after the low-float, high short-interest stocks — like Weber — to which they’ve grown accustomed to trading.
What Happened With Weber Stock? Traders were anxiously looking for the next big meme stock as shares of Bed Bath & Beyond surged in recent weeks.
Read more: Bed Bath & Beyond Announces Strategic Plan To Restructure, Shares Plunge
Will Meade, a former hedge fund manager, started the fire when he noted the staggering 67% short interest in Weber’s shares on Aug. 18.
Traders on the well-known Reddit forum r/WallStreetBets began buying, and speculated on how the short sellers would obtain the shares they need to cover their shorts.
The average session for Weber’s trading volume over a 100-day period is 897,457, according to Benzinga Pro — on Aug. 18, the traded volume exceeded 17.5 million.
As a result, from Aug. 17 to Aug. 19, shares of Weber squeezed from $8 to $11, but retraced back to $8.85.
A new meme stock, Weber enjoyed another lift this week, rising 9% between Monday’s open and Tuesday highs. It seems the run has ultimately ended as investors take profits, causing the stock to lose more than 28% of its value from the Tuesday highs.
WEBR Price Action: Weber shares ended Wednesday’s session down 12.44% at $7.18.
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