Andrew Left to end commentary on GameStop short call following harassment from 'angry mob'
- Famed short-seller Andrew Left of Citron Research will no longer publicize his bearish commentary on GameStop after he and his family were harassed by an "angry mob" of GameStop investors, according to a letter from Left.
- Left had explained his case for why shares of GameStop should trade down about 50% from its current levels to $20 in a video posted to YouTube on Thursday.
- "This is not just name-calling and hacking but includes serious crimes such as harassment of minor children," Left said.
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Andrew Left of Citron Research is ending his bearish commentary on GameStop after he said an "angry mob" of investors harassed him and his family over the past 48 hours, according to a letter Left posted to Twitter on Friday.
Shares of GameStop have staged a gravity-defying rally in recent weeks, with shares up as much as 307% year-to-date based on Friday's intra-day high of $76.76.
But Left thinks the hype in GameStop is overdone and outlined in a video posted to YouTube on Thursday why shares should trade down to $20, representing about 50% downside potential from Thursday's close.
Left is in a tug-of-war battle between a new class of retail investors that have flooded the stock market since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last March. These investors have proliferated on forums like Reddit's WallStreetBets, which likely helped stage a more than 78% rally in shares on Friday.
"What Citron has experienced in the past 48 hours is nothing short of shameful and a sad commentary on the state of the investment community," Left opened up his letter with. Left posted his letter to a new Twitter account, @CitronResearch2, because "Twitter working through multiple hack attempts," Left said.
Left went onto say that he will no longer be commenting on GameStop, not because of a change in his investment thesis on the company, but because an "angry mob who owns this stock has spent the past 48 hours committing multiple crimes," Left said.
Left will be turning over evidence to the FBI and SEC, according to the letter, adding that the harassment he received is not just name-calling and hacking "but includes serious crimes such as harassment of minor children," according to the letter.
"We are investors who put safety and family first and when we believe this has been compromised, it is our duty to walk away from a stock," Left said, concluding his letter with, "Family first."
See the full letter below.
