Shares of Paramount Skydance Corp. (NASDAQ: PSKY) surged sharply on Wednesday, as investor chatter suggested the newly merged media company may be the latest beneficiary of a meme-stock-style buying wave.

The stock climbed as much as 59% during the session, before settling with gains of more than 34% trading at $14.68 at the time of writing.

Trading volume spikes to multi-month high

Paramount Skydance’s rally was accompanied by a sharp increase in trading activity.

More than 40 million shares had changed hands by mid-morning — well above the 30-day average daily volume of 16.7 million shares.

At $13.24 per share, the company was on track for its highest closing price since May 2, 2024, and its largest single-day percentage gain since March 2020.

The move followed a stretch of weakness for the stock. As recently as Monday, shares had hit an 11-month low after dropping 23.9% over the previous two weeks, in line with declines across peer media companies.

Some market participants pointed to elevated short interest as a potential catalyst for the sharp upside move.

Short positions represent 13.4% of Paramount Skydance’s public float, well above levels for competitors such as Warner Bros. Discovery (4.3%), Walt Disney (1.1%), and Comcast (1.2%).

This higher short positioning makes the stock more susceptible to rapid price spikes if short sellers rush to cover positions.

Merger and UFC broadcasting deal add fuel

The rally comes just days after Paramount Global completed its long-anticipated merger with Skydance Media.

The transaction, approved by the Federal Communications Commission on July 25, created Paramount Skydance Corp., which began trading on August 8.

Shortly after finalizing the merger, the company announced a major seven-year, $7.7 billion deal with TKO Group Holdings Inc. to broadcast all Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events in the United States.

The agreement is expected to bolster the company’s sports content offerings and attract a broader audience to its streaming platform, Paramount+.

Evercore ISI media analyst Kutgun Maral described the UFC agreement as a “loud message” to Hollywood, sports leagues, and Wall Street, signaling that the merged company is committed to investing in its creative portfolio and scaling its streaming operations globally.

Meme-stocks resurfaces in 2025

The strong price action in Paramount Skydance shares comes amid a broader resurgence in so-called meme-stock trading, a phenomenon popularized in 2021 with stocks like GameStop and AMC Entertainment.

Other heavily shorted companies, including Opendoor Technologies, Kohl’s, and Krispy Kreme, have also seen sharp gains in recent sessions.

Market observers note that the underlying drivers behind meme-stock rallies — high short interest, retail investor enthusiasm, and speculative momentum — never fully disappeared.

Greg Swenson of the Leuthold Group recently wrote that such behavior has “bubbled back to the surface” and is fueled by “animal spirits” in the market.

Tom Bruni, editor in chief of Stocktwits, told MarketWatch that investors are increasingly looking for new opportunities in the wake of a broad market rebound from April lows.

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