Chamath Palihapitiya jumps on the GameStop bandwagon

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Social Capital co-founder and CEO, Chamath Palihapitiya, has made a name for himself identifying excellent high-growth companies and taking them public using special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs).

Now, the noted investor is looking to profit from the recent gyrations of GameStop (NYSE: GME) stock. In a post on Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) Tuesday, Palihapitiya said:

"Lots of [GameStop] talk, soooooo .... We bought Feb $115 calls on [GameStop] this morning. Let's gooooooo!!!!!!!!" 

Buying calls is an options strategy investors can use when they believe a stock will rise.

Palihapitiya's position suggests that he believes the stock could gain as much as 50% from Monday's close — and do it in less than a month.

The post was a follow up to one on Monday in which Palihapitiya said:

"Tell me what to buy tomorrow and if you convince me I'll throw a few 100ks at it to start. Ride or die."

GameStop has been a battleground stock in recent weeks. Shares were selling for as little as $17.25 earlier this month, but several catalysts conspired to send them soaring.

News broke on January 11 that activist investor and Chewy (NYSE: CHWY) co-founder, Ryan Cohen. and two of his associates had gained seats on GameStop's board.

Cohen's firm, RC Ventures, had amassed a 13% stake in GameStop last year, making it the company's second-largest shareholder. Cohen's success with online retailer, Chewy, has given investors hope that he could help steer GameStop toward similar e-commerce results. 

The drama took another turn late last week when a tug-of-war broke out between noted short-seller Citron Research and a group of investors on the subreddit r/WallStreetBets. Citron Editor, Andrew Left, eventually threw in the towel on Friday as the short squeeze that the online group had sparked continued.

GameStop has gained more than 375% so far this year and was recently trading above $100 as investors bet on a turnaround for the company. Palihapitiya has now joined the fray.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.