Investors in Trump’s Truth Social platform have profited over $200 million by shorting stocks

Investors have taken a keen interest in former President Donald Trump’s Truth Social — but not in the way he might like.

With investors keying in on metrics that don’t add up on DJT, the stock ticker for Truth Social, many have decided to short the stock in a ploy to stuff their pockets with cash.

And it’s been working.

An analysis from the Associated Press places profits from short-sellers at about $200 million, not including the upfront premiums, which have been large due to the stock’s perceived overvaluation.

A few investors interviewed by the AP have bought “put” options, which are designed to pay out if investors can predict the price of a stock correctly.

For example, one buys a put option for an upfront premium on a stock for a “strike price” of $5 for a certain date when the stock is trading at $8. If the stock dips below $5, the option is “in-the-money,” and the option holder may close the position by selling 100 shares of stock per option at $5 for a potential profit.

But the option could fail, and if the stock doesn’t move from $8 or goes up, the put is worthless and expires at zero on the given date, generating a loss of the upfront premium paid.

Bettors gambling on the DJT stock are pointing to its continual fall since it reported a revenue of only $4.1 million on April 1 and a potential influx of new stock that will boost Trump’s net worth but devalue the stock.

“This company makes no money. … It makes no sense,” said Boise, Idaho, ad executive Elle Stange, who estimates she has made $1,300 betting against the Truth Social stock.

“He’s not as great a businessman as he thinks,” Stange said. “A lot of his businesses go belly up, quickly.”

Jeff Cheung, a Seattle IT security specialist, told the outlet the stock “is guaranteed to go to zero.”

Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes recently raised alarms that “naked” puts, puts in which investors don’t actually have a share in the company, have been deployed illegally, though it is a legal practice, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“If we have to go to the Congress or if we have to take legal action, we will do whatever it takes to defend our retail investors,” Nunes said in an interview with Newsmax.

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The company’s stock hasn’t faced a monumental drop until recently, likely because of Trump supporters’ ardent faith in the business, with some buying it as a campaign contribution of sorts or to support Trump himself.

Trump’s net worth has bounced around with the stock’s rise and falls as he holds the majority of shares in Truth Social, with recent Bloomberg estimates placing it at just over $7 billion, more than half of which is tied up in the media company shares.