10-year-old investor Jaydyn Carr earns $3,200 from GameStop shares 

A much needed feel-good story broke amidst all the chaos, protests, and lawsuits orbiting GameStop's stock. Jaydyn Carr, a 10-year-old GameStop shareholder, cashed in his 10 shares, now worth $3,200.

Jaydyn Carr, a 10-year-old in San Antonio, enjoyed a return of over 5,000% on a 2019 Kwanzaa gift: 10 shares of GameStop.https://t.co/gpwpWAVGGl

— The New York Times (@nytimes) January 30, 2021

Unlike the mad dash on the stock made by r/wallstreetbets, Carr was gifted the stock by his mother in 2019 as a Kwanzaa present.

Happy Kwanzaa! 🖤❤️💚 Habari gani? Umoja! (What is the news? Unity!) Kwanzaa (Swahili meaning "first") is a seven-day African-American holiday honoring African traditions of family, ancestors, and the harvest.🎨: @ItsHippyPotter#habarigani #kwanzaa #CNLovesHippy pic.twitter.com/v3Euzh26Wo

— Cartoon Network (@cartoonnetwork) December 26, 2020

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GameStop: Power to the Players

Nina Carr, Jaydyn's mother, told CNN that she bought 10 shares of GameStop's stock.

Wish I had the same knowledge/direction at that age.

— it’s a panoramic (@RickyWiIIiams) January 30, 2021

She wanted to teach her son about the stock market. GameStop was an obvious choice since a fifth-grader had an emotional connection to the company.

"We were always there two years ago, just buying different video games. I wanted to give him the shares of GameStop, so he could have something tangible to hold on to and that way he can appreciate it."

No one could have imagined that 10 shares bought for $60 then would be worth $3200 now. On January 27, Mrs. Carr's phone started buzzing with notifications about the stock surge. Her son eventually sold his shares for $320 each. He said,

"I wanted to sell it then and there because I knew it could drop in seconds."

His GameStop shares had been a Kwanzaa gift from is mom, and he’d held on to them since he was 8 years old. But when the time was right to sell them, he knew it. Oh, he’s 10.https://t.co/ennmn7bnPX

— MarketWatch (@MarketWatch) January 30, 2021

Later during the interview, Mrs. Carr revealed that after her husband had passed away, she took it upon herself to teach her son about investing, saving, credit card debt, and other financial concepts that should be common knowledge.

"We're African American. You don't see a lot of that in our community. I wanted to give him a step up when it comes to learning these things because I learned it later in life and I wish I had known sooner. He's my legacy and I have to make sure that he's prepared for the future."

Great story - love that his mom has been teaching him about financial management! This should be a nice motivator.

— Monica Bonny (@monicabonny) January 31, 2021

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GameStop's surge

GameStop stock has shot up more than 1,500% at the moment. The gains have largely been due to the r/wallstreetbets, who bulk-bought the stock to hurt short-sellers and hedge funds.

Not at all. Just Wall Street finding out the system they created for short selling stocks backfired. System should’ve never existed in the first place. Betting on companies to lose value. No respect for all those Wall Street brokers and fund managers. Add no value to the world

— CS.pirate (@pspnj) January 28, 2021

The community managed to boost GameStop's $30 stock price to $140 in a week. The unprecedented surge of the stock led to short-sellers losing an estimate of $70 billion.

Losses on short positions in U.S. firms top $70 billion - Ortex data https://t.co/owC0kME2RQ pic.twitter.com/l45koBVntc

— Reuters (@Reuters) January 28, 2021

What started as a taunt ended up becoming a rallying cry for small-time investors. GameStop reached a staggering $422 per share at its peak. Its market cap went from a mere $400 million to $25 billion.

GameStop market cap went from $400 million to $25 billion.GameStop board convo: Our buy 2 get 1 free used games offers seems to be working.

— Jerome Powell (@alifarhat79) January 31, 2021

Due to the massive surge, the trading app Robinhood froze all buying/trading of GameStop's shares, which eventually led to a class-action lawsuit and possible SEC investigation.