On Aug. 7, Hollywood’s old guard and Silicon Valley’s disruptors officially merged, as Paramount Global and Skydance Media sealed an $8.4 billion pact to create Paramount, a Skydance Corporation (PSKY). Under the leadership of CEO David Ellison, the newly combined entity seeks to integrate Paramount’s cinematic heritage with Skydance’s technological expertise.
Yet, almost overnight, PSKY became something else entirely: a meme stock. In Street talk, that’s a stock rocketed higher by social media hype and speculative fervor, not cold financial calculus. CNBC’s Jim Cramer fanned the flames Wednesday, posting: “Paramount, (PSKY), is a meme stock!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Small float… shocking.” A low float means a scarcity of shares, which can send prices into a manic whiplash when demand spikes.
