AMC jumps 10% as the Reddit favorite reports the most customers in a weekend since reopening

• AMC Entertainment jumped as much as 10% on Monday after it reported strong traffic at its theaters over the weekend.
• The company said more than 2 million customers visited its movie theaters over the weekend.
• The new 'Fast and Furious' movie installment helped drive a post-pandemic box office record.
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Meme stock and Reddit favorite AMC Entertainment soared on Monday, surging as much as 10% following a strong weekend at the movies.

Driven by hot weather and the opening of "Fast and Furious 9," AMC saw more than 2 million guests visit its theaters over the weekend, representing a post-pandemic record for the company.

"Fast and Furious 9" also broke records, with the movie generating $70 million in ticket sales over the weekend. That's the biggest opening weekend for a movie since 2019's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

According to AMC, six of its movie theater locations represented the top 10 busiest theaters in the US. And an additional 500,000 people visited AMC's international locations over the weekend, according to the company.

"The combination of widespread vaccination and the release once again of blockbuster movies is proving to be the magic formula for the return of moviegoing," AMC CEO Adam Aron said.

Shares of AMC are up more than 2,600% year-to-date and have cost short-sellers billions in losses.

Despite the near-record stock price and an improving outlook for movie ticket sales, some investors remain unconvinced that AMC is worth its current market valuation of nearly $30 billion. Short interest as a percentage of AMC's entire share float still stands at just below 20%, according to data from ShortSqueeze.