Meme Stocks: Bed Bath & Beyond, AMC Theatres, and GameStop
February 11, 2022
In 2021, “meme stocks” captured the imagination of individual investors. Many first-time investors bought stock to create a short squeeze on Bed Bath & Beyond, GameStop, and AMC Theatres stocks. Hashtags like #SaveAMC trended on Twitter and other social media platforms. What was the impact of meme stocks? Meme stocks are changing the rules of trading. However, stocks aren’t the only way to understand company performance. Foot traffic data can provide insights into how brands stack up against each other. We analyzed foot traffic to three popular meme stock companies, including Bed Bath & Beyond, AMC Theatres, and GameStop, to see how they performed in 2021.
What Do the Foot Traffic Trends Say?
By March 2021, AMC Theatres had surpassed both Bed Bath & Beyond and GameStop in terms of total foot traffic. The biggest boost for AMC’s movie theaters came during the holiday season; foot traffic was 31% higher in December 2021, compared to the previous month. Bed Bed Bath & Beyond saw its biggest foot traffic decline in January 2021, and while the company’s foot traffic began to recover by the end of the year, foot traffic in December 2021 was far lower than in 2020. In contrast, foot traffic to GameStop stores was flat to down, except for peaks in early spring and summer.
The Return of AMC Theatres
In 2021, AMC Theatres gained far more foot traffic than other meme stock brands. Like other movie theater chains, AMC struggled to get people back to its theaters after the coronavirus lockdowns. Exclusive theatrical and holiday movie releases may have contributed to its significant recovery in Q4 2021. While Bed Bath & Beyond had a higher number of consumer visits than GameStop in 2021, the video game retailer held onto more of its foot traffic. What could be the reason behind Bed Bath & Beyond’s decline in foot traffic? The home goods chain closed some stores in 2021 and invested more in its digital strategy, which might have affected visits to its physical locations.
Measuring Brand Performance with Location Intelligence
Location intelligence can help to measure brand performance. Foot traffic data provides analysts with insight into how a brand performs beyond its quarterly earnings and stock prices. By enriching business analytics with location intelligence, investors can better understand which brands they should add to their portfolios. For more information on measuring retail foot traffic, reach out to one of our location intelligence experts.
