Twitter investors are not sure if CEO Jack Dorsey can run the company, but they are hoping for the best. On Wednesday, shares of the micro-blogging site jumped 6.9% after Dorsey announced that he is not stepping down from Twitter or Square, the payment company he also runs.
Trump factor pushing up Twitter’s stock
Twitter investors were hopeful that there would be some takers for the company. The dual responsibility by Dorsey did not prove to be good for the micro-blogging site, as its shares tumbled 16% in the past year. Also the early attempts of finding a buyer did not prove successful.
However, the jump in the stock on Wednesday has nothing to do with Dorsey’s announcement about retaining his position. Rather, it seems President-elect Donald Trump is the one who is making Twitter more valuable, says Barron’s. Trump is quite fond of the platform. The value of any media company could skyrocket if the President of the U.S. makes market-moving pronouncements on it.
Earlier this week, an analyst stated that Twitter is gradually increasing its number of users. Canaccord Genuity’s Michael Graham projected that the company will add 4.4 million net users in this quarter. Though slow, it is still ahead of general expectations.
“Twitter seems to be building some momentum of late, helped by the president-elect making daily news through the site,” says Barron’s.
Dorsey has “complicated” feelings about Trump on Twitter
At a time when Trump is contributing so much to Twitter’s popularity, a big question is how the company feels about it. This was the question asked to Dorsey at the Recode Code Commerce conference in San Francisco on Tuesday evening. Dorsey grinned first, and after several failed attempts at dodging, he finally stated “complicated.”
“I feel very proud of the role of the service and what it stands for,” Dorsey said. “It’s had such a spotlight on it through his usage and through the election.”
On being asked what he meant by “complicated,” Dorsey talked about the usual dynamics that arise when such a prominent figure regularly posts his thoughts on the site.
“What does this mean to have a direct line to how he’s thinking in real-time and to see that?” Dorsey mused. “I’m not sure.”
On Wednesday, Twitter shares closed up 6.86% at $19.48. Year to date, the stock is down almost 16%, while in the last six months, it is up almost 30%.
