AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE:AMC) shares spiked Monday after Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter doubled the price target on the cinema chain.
An article on MarketWatch revealed AMC was among a pack of so-called meme stocks whose shares were buoyant on Monday, the others include GameStop Corporation (NYSE:GME) and the headphone manufacturer Koss Corporation (NASDAQ:KOSS)
Meme stocks were significantly higher as of Monday’s closing with GameStop rallying over 41% and Koss up 27.5%.
Pachter upped his target for AMC from $2.50 to $5.00 and reiterated his neutral rating. The analyst wrote it was "tough to get positive here, despite rising industry optimism," as per MarketWatch.
"AMC may take years before it is able to revisit its prior growth strategy as it repays its growing mountain of debt," according to the Wedbush analyst.
AMC stock has soared 325.5% on a year-to-date basis. On Monday, the company’s shares closed 15.4% higher at $9.29 and fell almost 1.7% in after-hours trading. They opened Tuesday shied away four cents to $9.25.
AMC shares rallied in February as well after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the reopening of theaters. The reopening mandate calls for a capacity cap of 25%, enhanced air filtration, ventilation, and purification norms.
AMC CEO Adam Aron said this week that he was impressed with the Reddit investors who fueled the rally in meme shares, including in his company.
