TMTG, a publicly traded company controlled by President Donald Trump's family, announced in December a merger with nuclear technology company TAE Technologies, which develops technology for so-called fusion power. This gave TMTG shares a 40 percent boost over a few days.
At the same time, short selling increased sharply, up about 30 percent, according to data analysis firm S3. Short positions thus represent about 10 percent of TMTG shares outstanding, according to the Financial Times.
TMTG shares peaked at around $40 last year, but had plunged to $10.50 ahead of the announcement of the TAE Technologies merger. On Tuesday, the stock closed at $14.33 per share on the Nasdaq exchange.
Short selling means borrowing and selling a share that you do not own, in the hope of being able to buy it back at a lower price in the future and thus make money from a price drop.
