how high did gme stock go in 2021

how high did gme stock go in 2021

The question how high did GME stock go in 2021 asks about the extreme price moves of GameStop Corp. (ticker: GME) during the January–February 2021 “meme stock” short squeeze. In short: reported peaks vary by metric—intraday/pre‑market prints reached roughly $480–$500 per share at the episode’s height, the highest official closing price during the episode was in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of dollars, and later corporate actions (notably a 4‑for‑1 split in 2022) produce lower split‑adjusted historical highs. This article explains those numbers, gives a concise day‑by‑day timeline, lists the primary drivers, and shows how to interpret different data sources.

As of January 28, 2021, Reuters reported intense volatility and broker restrictions as GME hit previously unseen intraday highs; as of mid‑2024 Macrotrends and Statmuse report split‑adjusted historical highs that appear different from raw intraday prints. Throughout this piece, specific numeric claims reference primary historical price tables and reputable news timelines.

Background

GameStop Corp. is a U.S. retail video‑game company that operated a large network of physical stores and an online presence. Before 2021 the company faced declining brick‑and‑mortar retail trends, pressure on same‑store sales, and uncertainty about digital transformation. These operating challenges and the market view that GameStop’s share price might fall produced elevated short interest—many institutional and hedge fund investors had sold shares short, betting the price would decline.

That combination—trouble in fundamentals plus heavy short positions—set the stage for a short squeeze when coordinated retail buying drove rapid price rises. When short interest is very high, sharp buying can force short sellers to buy to cover, which amplifies upward pressure on the share price.

The January–February 2021 price surge (overview)

The January–February 2021 episode was marked by rapid, large percentage moves over days and weeks. Retail investors—many coordinating via online communities—bought shares and options aggressively, producing explosive intraday swings and dramatic headline volatility. Depending on the metric used, answers to how high did GME stock go in 2021 differ:

• Intraday / pre‑market highs reached roughly $480–$500 per share according to major market data and news reports.
• The highest official closing price during the episode was substantially lower than the intraday peak but still in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of dollars.
• Split‑adjusted historical views (after a 4‑for‑1 split in 2022) reduce historical peaks to roughly one‑quarter of their unadjusted values—important when comparing historical charts from different providers.

Read on for precise figures, the timeline of key dates, the forces that drove the surge, and how different data providers report the same events differently.

Measures of the peak price

When readers ask how high did GME stock go in 2021, it is important to clarify the measurement method. Here are commonly used metrics and the values most often cited by reputable sources:

• Intraday / pre‑market high: Many news outlets and market data providers reported an intraday/pre‑market high near $480–$500 per share during the peak trading days. For example, multiple sources referenced a pre‑market spike on January 28, 2021 that printed in the neighborhood of $480–$483 per share. As of January 28, 2021, Reuters and other contemporaneous reports described intraday prints in this range.

• Highest official closing price during the 2021 episode: The largest official closing price recorded in the January episode was substantially lower than the intraday peak but still large compared to prior levels. Data providers such as Yahoo Finance and TradingView list closing prices in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of dollars for late January 2021 trading days (for example, late‑January closes above $300). As of January 27, 2021, several historical tables record a closing high in that range.

• Split‑adjusted values: A later corporate action—a 4‑for‑1 forward stock split announced and executed in 2022—means many providers now show split‑adjusted historical charts. Splitting raw (unadjusted) prices by four converts an unadjusted closing price of roughly $347 to a split‑adjusted value near $86.88. Sites such as Macrotrends and Statmuse explicitly report split‑adjusted historical highs; for readers, this is why some reputable sources show a much lower “all‑time high” when historical data are adjusted for the later split.

In practice, answering how high did GME stock go in 2021 requires stating whether you mean intraday peak, official close, or split‑adjusted high. This article gives each of those numbers with context.

Day‑by‑day timeline (Jan–Feb 2021)

Below is a concise timeline of the core events and price action in January–February 2021. Dates and price references draw on contemporaneous reporting and historical price tables.

• Early January 2021: Ryan Cohen, an activist investor and the founder of an e‑commerce pet supply company, increased his stake in GameStop and sought board representation. As of January 11, 2021, GameStop announced changes to its board—news that attracted investor interest and helped set the stage for retail buying.

• January 12–15, 2021: Early retail accumulation became visible. Price moves were noticeable but modest compared with later explosions.

• January 22–25, 2021: GME began to accelerate, with sharp daily percentage gains during this window. Social media posts and increased media coverage amplified attention.

• January 26–27, 2021: Volatility spiked. As of January 27, 2021, many data sources report one of the largest official closing prices of the episode (closing values were in the hundreds of dollars). News outlets reported record high trading volumes.

• January 28, 2021: The episode’s highest intraday/pre‑market prints occurred around this date. As of January 28, 2021, Reuters and other outlets reported intraday highs in the roughly $480–$500 range and described extraordinary volatility. Some brokerages implemented trading limits or restrictions late on January 28; those brokerage actions themselves became a major news story.

• Late January–February 2021: Following the peak intraday prints and broker restrictions, GME’s price re‑priced downward quickly but remained far above pre‑January levels. Volatility continued through February and into March, with big intraday swings and significant option activity.

• Through 2021: After the early 2021 episode, GME continued to exhibit elevated volatility relative to its pre‑January history. The market repeatedly tested different price levels as short interest, retail interest, and news events interacted.

Drivers of the surge

Several interacting forces explain why GME’s share price moved so dramatically. The most commonly cited drivers are:

• Extremely high short interest: As of late 2020 and early January 2021, GME had unusually high short interest—at times reported as exceeding 100% of the float by some measures. High short interest creates vulnerability: when price rises rapidly, short sellers can face substantial losses and may be forced to buy shares to cover, which further pushes prices up (a classic short squeeze mechanic).

• Retail coordination and social media: Retail investors coordinating primarily via online forums and social communities (notably the r/WallStreetBets community) initiated and amplified buying pressure. The viral nature of social posts, screenshots, and headlines pulled in more participants.

• Options activity and gamma squeeze mechanics: Heavy buying of call options forced market makers to hedge by purchasing underlying shares, a dynamic that can amplify buying pressure (sometimes called a “gamma squeeze”). The interaction between options flows and cash equity markets increased the amplitude of price moves.

• Media coverage and celebrity attention: Wide media coverage and high‑profile mentions drew capital from a broader pool of retail and institutional players, adding liquidity and volatility.

• Market structure and liquidity dynamics: Rapidly rising prices, intraday halts, and order‑flow frictions meant that liquidity could evaporate quickly, producing outsized price moves on relatively modest executed daily share counts.

Each of these drivers is supported by contemporaneous reporting and market commentaries. The combination turned what might otherwise have been a localized rally into an episode of systemic market interest.

Market and regulatory responses

Late on January 28, 2021 several retail brokerages restricted buying of certain securities, including GameStop, citing liquidity and clearing‑house margin requirements. As of January 28–29, 2021, these brokerage restrictions were widely reported by Reuters, USA Today, and other outlets and prompted public outcry as well as political and regulatory attention.

Regulators, legislators, and exchanges examined the episode. Congressional hearings, investor lawsuits, and inquiries into brokerage practices, market‑making, and clearing mechanisms followed. These responses reflected concern about market stability, fairness, and the adequacy of risk controls.

Throughout these discussions, commentators distinguished between issues of trading access, risk management at brokerages, and whether market rules or infrastructure required reform.

Aftermath and later price activity

After the January–February 2021 peak, GME’s price retreated from its intraday highs but remained volatile through the rest of 2021 and into 2022. The episode left several lasting effects:

• Market conversation shifted: The events changed how the public and regulators discuss short selling, retail trading, and the impact of social media on markets.

• Legal and regulatory follow‑up: Lawsuits alleging market manipulation and investigations into broker actions and market structure persisted for months.

• Corporate actions: GameStop later executed a 4‑for‑1 stock split in 2022 (a forward split). As of mid‑2024, many historical price charts presented by some data providers are split‑adjusted, reducing the displayed historical peak by a factor of four relative to raw unadjusted prints.

• Continued volatility and episodic trading interest: GME has experienced intermittent renewed interest from retail traders and occasional price spikes after the initial episode, though none matched the January 2021 extremes.

Interpreting headline numbers (how to read price reports)

When answering how high did GME stock go in 2021 it helps to know why different reputable sources show different peaks:

• Intraday vs official close: News reports sometimes cite intraday prints or pre‑market highs (these are transient high ticks recorded when trades occur). Historical daily tables typically report the official high/low/close for a trading day; the official close is often used as the canonical “price” for many comparisons. Intraday prints can be higher than the official close.

• Split adjustments: If a stock undergoes a forward or reverse split after an event, many data providers adjust historical prices to present a continuous, comparable price series. For example, dividing a 2021 price by four after a 4‑for‑1 split in 2022 will show the 2021 peak at roughly one‑quarter of the unadjusted level. That is why Macrotrends or Statmuse may show a split‑adjusted all‑time high near $86.88 for January 27, 2021 while contemporaneous news coverage reported raw intraday prints near $480.

• Data sources and exchange feeds: Different vendors aggregate exchange prints differently; some show consolidated tape intraday ticks, some show broker‑specific prints, and some normalize or filter out odd‑lot prints. Reputable providers will document their methodology; consult provider notes if precise tick‑level provenance matters.

• Rounding and reporting conventions: Journalists sometimes round to convenient figures (e.g., “roughly $480” or “about $500”), which is appropriate for general reporting but can create small discrepancies between headlines.

For a rigorous comparison, cite the precise metric (intraday high vs official close), the date, and whether the number is split‑adjusted.

Data and sources

Precise numeric answers to how high did GME stock go in 2021 depend on the chosen metric. Primary sources and reputable summaries to consult include:

• Historical daily price tables and tick data (e.g., aggregated exchange prints and day‑end highs/lows) used in financial data services and on financial websites.
• Contemporaneous news timelines and reporting: for example, Reuters’ timeline of the surge (reported around late January–February 2021) provides a dated recounting of major events. As of January 28, 2021, Reuters reported record intraday swings and the broker responses that followed.
• Historical aggregators such as Macrotrends and Statmuse: as of mid‑2024 they display split‑adjusted and unadjusted historical highs and clarify which methods they use for adjustment. Statmuse specifically lists split‑adjusted all‑time highs for GME (e.g., a split‑adjusted closing high near $86.88 corresponding to the late‑January 2021 peak after a 4‑for‑1 split).
• Market charts and tick feeds such as TradingView and Yahoo Finance, which offer raw daily highs, lows, opens, closes, and intraday charts.
• Contemporary press coverage and explainers from outlets like USA Today, Dexerto, and TheStreet for narrative context and event sequencing.

When citing numeric claims in discussions or reporting, include the date of the price print and specify the metric (for example, “intraday high of $483 on January 28, 2021, per consolidated exchange prints” or “official close of $347.51 on January 27, 2021 (unadjusted)”), and note any corporate action adjustments if the data are split‑adjusted.

See also

• Short squeeze
• Meme stock
• r/WallStreetBets
• Market volatility
• GameStop Corp.

References

Sources used to compile this article (reporting dates shown where available):

• "GameStop short squeeze" — Wikipedia (overview and chronology; consulted for contextual chronology).
• Reuters, “Timeline: GameStop’s 1,600% surge...” — contemporaneous timeline reporting significant intraday moves and broker responses (reported around January 28–29, 2021). As of January 28, 2021, Reuters reported peak intraday volatility and brokerage restrictions.
• Macrotrends — "GameStop - Stock Price History" (historical daily prices; many pages show split‑adjusted and unadjusted series; consulted as of mid‑2024 for split‑adjusted references).
• Statmuse — summary of all‑time high prices and split‑adjusted figures (lists split‑adjusted closing highs such as approximately $86.88 for Jan 27, 2021 after a 4‑for‑1 split; consulted in 2023–2024 archives).
• TradingView — GME chart and intraday tick charts (used to verify intraday prints and volatility patterns).
• USA Today — explainer coverage of the GME surge and retail trading dynamics (reported in late January 2021).
• Dexerto — timeline coverage and social media perspective on the WallStreetBets run (January–February 2021 reporting).
• EBSCO Research Starter — short squeeze overviews and market mechanics summary.
• Yahoo Finance — GME historical price tables (daily opens/highs/lows/closes and volumes for late January–February 2021).
• TheStreet — timeline articles summarizing key developments around the episode.

All price and event claims in this article reference the sources named above. Where numbers are quoted, they refer to the metric specified (intraday high, official close, or split‑adjusted value) and to the date of the print.

Further reading and primary price verification can be done by consulting historical daily price tables from recognized financial data vendors and the contemporaneous news timeline entries listed.

Practical notes for readers

• If you ask how high did GME stock go in 2021 for comparison or historical context, clarify whether you want the intraday top, the official close, or the split‑adjusted view.

• For exact historical verification, consult day‑end OHLC (open/high/low/close) tables from a reputable provider and check whether the provider shows split‑adjusted or unadjusted values. When quoting numbers in analysis or reporting, include the metric and the date.

• If you want to monitor current GME quotes, use a reliable trading platform. For users seeking a trading platform with advanced charting, derivatives, and wallet services, consider exploring Bitget’s trading interface and the Bitget Wallet for custody and transfer of supported assets. Bitget provides market data, trading tools, and a secure wallet environment (note: this mention is informational and not investment advice).

Further exploration: explore Bitget’s educational content and market tools to compare historical price series and understand split adjustments and intraday versus close price reporting.

Further exploration and data verification: to answer "how high did GME stock go in 2021" precisely for your chosen metric, consult a historical price table and specify (1) intraday tick vs official close and (2) whether numbers are split‑adjusted. For assistance with charting historical prices or using split adjustments on trading platforms, Bitget customer resources and charting tools can help you visualize both adjusted and unadjusted series.