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Chapter 592 Opposing Scenes

The market was stabilized.

The attempt by YueDong Games to prop up its stock price not only failed to stem the downward trend, but also triggered an even more intense sell-off, resulting in a larger-scale capital slaughter.

Wall Street interprets this as a sign that Leap Games has already revealed its hand, and now it's a matter of who can hold on the longest.

September 14th.

After the US stock market closed, data disclosed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under Rule 10b-18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 showed that YueDong Games had repurchased a total of 530 million shares that day, representing 3.52% of the company's total share capital.

However, the stock price still fell against the trend by 4.1% that day, closing at $215.7, with a market value loss of $12.8 billion compared to the previous trading day.

The Wall Street Journal published an article that evening titled "The Biggest Negative News in the History of Leap Games: The Buyback Strategy Revealed."

According to SEC regulations, YueDong Games' share buyback limit is 1500 million shares, which cannot exceed the statutory limit of 10% of the total share capital.

"However, in just one day, its repurchase volume has already reached 35.3% of the total quota, while the open short positions after the market closes are still as high as 708 million shares."

The article cites a Goldman Sachs strategist who points out that "faced with coordinated selling pressure from institutional investors, it's only a matter of time before YueDong Games' stock price is breached."

Nasdaq was closed for the weekend from December 15th to 16th, but the negative public opinion surrounding YueDong Games seemed to have spread like wildfire, as if it had reached its limit. Nasdaq reopened on December 17th.

During the pre-market auction, YueDong Games' stock price fell by more than 7.4% to $199.8, officially breaking below the $200 mark, and its total market value dropped by $300 billion.

Inside the Tiger Fund trading room in Lower Manhattan.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the steel cables of the Brooklyn Bridge gleamed with a rugged metallic sheen in the cold light, while inside, an atmosphere of excitement pervaded the room.

Traders stared intently at the numbers flashing on their screens, many with flushed faces from excitement.

Julian Robertson had barely stepped into the trading room when he heard an urgent report from an analyst: "Dynamic Games has just released its 1998 revenue forecast, projecting a 57.1% year-on-year increase in revenue, with total revenue exceeding $14 billion."

"What a brilliant earnings forecast!" Robertson straightened his tie, his tone carrying a barely perceptible admiration.

Last year, when YueDong Games IP was being discussed, the company's annual revenue forecast of $12 billion for this year shocked Wall Street, with many saying it was an impossible goal.

Now they have not only met this target, but even exceeded it, with total revenue reaching $14 billion.

But the praise was fleeting. Robertson revealed a cruel smile. "But even the best data is useless. Faced with Wall Street's coordinated sell-off, even the most dazzling financial reports are just paper shields. This is the embodiment of finance being king."

"As for retail investors, how many of them dare to buy the dip in the current situation?"

"Even if they try to buy at the bottom, it will be difficult to generate enough buying support." In his view, all of YueDong Games' actions are in vain, and the early release of this major earnings forecast further illustrates that YueDong Games has been forced into a desperate situation.

"What about gross profit and net profit?" Robertson asked curiously.

"Leap Games has not made any announcements."

Robertson looked at the other person, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. "It wasn't announced?"

He immediately wondered if there was really a problem with YueDong Games' overseas accounts.

Since it is a projected financial statement, it has no legal effect and is entirely guaranteed by the company's credit.

Wouldn't it be better to release slightly higher gross profit and net profit figures at this point?

"It doesn't matter anymore." Unable to figure it out, Robertson stopped thinking about it.

He immediately waved his hand and said, "Since the other side has left a loophole, we must seize it. Contact the PR team immediately and release a forecast through anonymous sources that 'YueDong Games' net profit may decline by 30% year-on-year,' to reinforce market doubts."

After giving his instructions, he asked again, "How's it going with the brokerage firm?"

The secretary shook her head helplessly. "Goldman Sachs has basically monopolized the stock market among the brokerages. We contacted 12 institutions, but we could only borrow 23 shares."

After pondering for two minutes, Robertson's gaze became resolute. "Notify the clearing department to submit a false position declaration, saying that we have locked up the full amount of shares through an over-the-counter agreement." The secretary immediately understood the subtext: this was naked short selling.

However, if the position cannot be closed and the SEC verifies the violation, the individual could face a fine of up to $200 million.

Fines are a minor issue; the key issue is criminal liability.

The closing price on the 17th.

Yuedong Games' stock price closed at $182, a single-day drop of over 15.6%, marking its largest single-day decline since its IPO.

Data disclosed by SEC in the evening showed that the number of institutions involved in shorting YueDong Games had increased to 37, an increase of 16 from the previous day.

But the market focus is no longer on the number of short-selling institutions; everyone wants to know how many shares YueDong Games repurchased today.

612 shares.

This number drove Wall Street crazy.

This means that YueDong Games can only repurchase less than 400 million shares.

"Ammunition is running out," Bloomberg wrote in its evening commentary. "When Jumping Games' buyback account dries up, who will absorb Wall Street's sell-off? Only God knows the answer."

Just when the market thought that YueDong Games was completely helpless, at 10 pm, YueDong Games' official website suddenly refreshed with two major announcements. The first announcement declared that the highly anticipated Call of Duty 2 had officially started pre-orders and was scheduled for a simultaneous global release on January 1st of next year.

As a sequel to the series, the previous game had sold over 800 million copies worldwide, generating over $3 million in revenue.

This pre-sale features exclusive pre-sale skins, which players can obtain simply by paying a prepayment.

The second announcement was the first public disclosure by YueDong Games of their new flagship IP, "The Sims."

In addition to releasing a poster, they also released a 3-minute gameplay trailer.

Judging from the video content, this game constructs a highly realistic virtual social ecosystem.

Players can customize their character's appearance, personality, and life ambitions, and drive behavioral decisions through a system of needs such as hunger, social interaction, and entertainment. Career paths cover dozens of possibilities, from homeless people to tech giants, and even support players in designing their own buildings and business models.

Just a promotional video and gameplay concept instantly caused a sensation in the entire gaming industry.

The forum section built into the YueDong gaming platform received 12 views within 30 minutes for related discussion posts.

"I can actually become a star? I want to be a star and make those arrogant little bitches kneel down at my feet."

"But the celebrity route involves dealing with paparazzi and being subjected to unspoken rules. Are you sure?"

"So, bro on the first floor, I think you've got a misunderstanding. If you're a celebrity, you'll just be kneeling at the feet of rich women." "You have to be a financial tycoon, a tech mogul, so we can experience the joys of being rich."

"Aren't there any people who want to be homeless? I'm more interested in their lives."

Gamers don't care about YueDong Games' financial problems or stock price; all they care about is a better gaming experience from YueDong Games.

The series of positive announcements from YueDong Games has undoubtedly dropped a bombshell on the gaming industry.

However, from the perspective of the capital circle, this is a case of running out of ideas.

Currently, the only financial groups in the Middle East and Europe that dare to buy YueDong Games stock and have large sums of money are those conglomerates.

According to professional analysis, these favorable policies are also targeted at them.

But do these institutions really dare to fight Wall Street to the death?