Trading for GameStop, AMC, and Express stocks halted for volatility as popular brokerages like Robinhood take action

Wall Street is concerned these stocks are getting too hot to handle.

a trader on the stock exchange holds his head in his hands, indicating a share price drop

Image source: Getty Images

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

Extreme volatility caused trading halts for several popular stocks on Thursday morning. Among them were video game retailer GameStop Corp (NYSE: GME), movie theater company AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE: AMC), and fashion retailer Express, Inc (NYSE: EXPR). According to data from Nasdaq, all three stocks triggered code M, a volatility trading pause for an "exchange-listed issue". Trading resumed a few minutes later.

With short-squeeze mania running rampant on the stock market, these stocks are trading with extremely high volume. As of 10.40am EST, GameStop's trading volume was already over 20 million shares, according to Yahoo Finance. This volume has caused all three of these stocks to more than double during January alone, with GameStop stock surging over 1,500%.

The mayhem is concerning to many on Wall Street, and brokerages are starting to take action to turn down the temperature. According to a blog post today from the company, Robinhood is restricting actions for GameStop, AMC, Express, and more. Users will only be allowed to close their positions for now, and the popular brokerage is also raising its margin requirements. Robinhood isn't alone. Interactive Brokers made a similar move.

The retail investing crowd trading GameStop stock isn't taking this new development lying down. Robinhood users are inundating app stores with one-star reviews. On Alphabet's Google Play app store, Robinhood's previously stellar rating has dropped to a single star this morning. This likely wasn't the kind of press the company was looking for considering it's reportedly thinking about an initial public offering (IPO) later this year.

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

Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Jon Quast owns shares of Nasdaq. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns shares of and recommends Alphabet (A shares) and Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool recommends Interactive Brokers and Nasdaq and recommends the following options: short March 2021 $55 puts on Interactive Brokers. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares) and Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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