Donald Trump’s social media company lost a whopping $58 million in fiscal year 2023. The results are likely to fuel skepticism about the company’s wild public trading debut, which led experts to call it another “meme stock” like AMC or GameStop.
Truth Social’s parent company also said it generated just $4.1 million in revenue over the 12-month period. A regulatory filing was released on Monday.. This is an improvement from 2022 sales of $1.47 million. The company’s revenue comes from ads displayed on social media apps.
Trump Media & Technology, which began trading last week under the former president’s initials “DJT,” soared nearly 60% to about $80 a share after Monday’s opening bell, before plunging as much as 10% to 1. The price was approximately $55.79 per share. After announcing its IPO last Tuesday, the company briefly increased its market share.
Republican presidential candidate Trump owns a majority of the company’s stock, but faces numerous charges and could be removed from the November ballot.
The company acknowledged in its filing that its success “depends, in part, on the popularity of our brands and the reputation and popularity of President Trump.”
“If President Trump’s popularity declines, TMTG’s brand value may decline,” one filing said. “Adverse publicity related to President Trump or the loss of President Trump’s services could adversely affect TMTG’s revenue, results of operations, and ability to maintain or create a consumer base.”
Experts told the Post last week that President Trump’s companies were “untethered from their fundamentals” and were trading at far higher prices than their results indicated, expending their hard-earned money. The risk for individual investors who invest in stocks is increasing.
Despite sluggish sales and a small user base, Trump’s company is now worth nearly $7.5 billion, a shocking figure that puts the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee on Bloomberg Billion. This propelled him into the top 500 of the Billionaires Index.
Truth Social’s mobile app was estimated to have just 494,000 monthly active users in February, according to data from analytics firm Similarweb. By comparison, Facebook has 142.4 million users, Elon Musk’s X has 75 million users, and even the lesser-known Threads has 7.2 million users.
After Trump Media’s initial success, some of the former president’s holdings are being used to pay for mounting legal costs, including a $175 million bail bond that expires this week in connection with a civil fraud case in New York. There was widespread speculation that he might let go.
For now, a six-month lock-up agreement that prevents President Trump and other shareholders from selling their shares is still in effect, the filing showed. To avoid the deal, the company’s board would have to grant Trump a special exemption.
First reported by Axios Regarding the documents to be submitted.
