Twitter shares surge 26% after Musk reveals his 9.2% stake

Twitter shares surge 26% as Musk reveals his 9.2% stake!

Elon Musk has become Twitter’s largest shareholder after buying a 9.2 percent stake in the social media company.

• The world’s richest man owns quadruple the shares of Twitter founded by Jack Dorsey
• Musk’s passive stake is valued at up to $2.9billion based on Friday’s stock close
• It has prompted Twitter’s share price to soar 26% in pre-market trading

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has built a 9.2% stake in Twitter, it emerges on Monday after a regulatory filing.

According to a document filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the world’s richest man worth an estimated $273billion bought nearly 73.5 Twitter shares, which makes a 9.2-percent stake in the company which is held by the Elon Musk Revocable Trust.

Market analyst Patrick O’Hare terms the move has bolstered sentiment.

“What the market is really responding to is the timing of Musk’s purchase and the supposition that it is an encouraging signal that longer-term investment opportunities might be availing themselves now in former high-flying stocks,” he said.

Richard Hunter, at Interactive Investor, said other major stock markets “continued their cautious grind higher, as investors took solace from a US economy which is showing increasing signs of being able to withstand the likely onslaught of interest rate rises to come.”

Shares of other social media firms, including Meta Platforms and Snapchat owner Snap, were also trading higher.

Musk, a prolific user of Twitter, has over 80 million followers on the microblogging site since joining in 2009 and has used the platform to make several announcements.

It is pertinent to mention here that Musk has been giving “serious thought” to building a new social media platform.