It’s stooooopid.
How can THIS still happen in 2026?
It reminds me of this old skit from SNL…
For as long as I can remember, there have always been pump and dumps.
The pump might start in a different way than the old email promotions or boiler room calls.
But the story (and the end result) is the same.
And it rarely ends well for everyday traders.
Last Thursday (Oct. 22) we saw a classic example when Davion Healthcare Plc (NASDAQ: DAVI) made the entire move in 20 minutes.
Check it out…
Table of Contents
Anatomy of an After-Hours Pump and Dump
So, how does something like this…
… still happen in 2026?
The first thing to understand is that DAVI was a direct listing.
That’s when a company doesn’t go through a traditional IPO process.
Instead of using investment banks or intermediaries, the shareholders sell existing shares directly into the market.
Why would a company do that? Three words…
No Lockup Period
In other words, anyone who owns shares is free to sell into the open market on the day it lists.
Crazy, right?
The company announced the date it would list in this press release on Tuesday (Oct. 20):
So, what happened with DAVI?
First, it traded hardly any shares during regular hours.
Nobody even knew about it, right? There was no “IPO road show” and it wasn’t a big story on financial news stations.
Then, after-hours trading started. It was a classic case of…
Free Chat Rooms Running Wild
Free chat rooms are SO shady. These guys buy right before they pump the stock to their followers.
In other words, they front-run the naive people in their chat room.
This afterhours pump & dump on $DAVI is just stoooooooooopid!!! From $13 to $88 now back down to $20, these free chatrooms are running wild and its good if you sell into strength, you just gettable extra quick and expect the worst as the dumps are HEARTBREAKING IF YOU OVERSTAY! pic.twitter.com/keH1efZobc
— Timothy Sykes (@timothysykes) October 22, 2026
Why would they wait until after-hours trading to do the pump?
For the same reason that after-hours trading has become my favorite time to trade…
No Volatility Halts
The pumpers know that if the stock spiked like that during regular hours, it would get halted (FAST).
So, they wait for after-hours to start the pump. And they keep pumping as shareholders sell into the spike.
And DAVI was a doozy…
The crazy thing is, DAVI only traded ~558k shares that day.
So, it wasn’t a big volume move. The float is ~13.5M shares. Even assuming every share bought and sold during the pump and dump was unique, it would’ve been a very small part of the float.
It’s WAY more likely that whoever was buying shares throughout the day orchestrated the pump and sold into strength all the way up.
Yes, it’s disgusting. But it won’t be the last time it happens, so learn from it.
Millionaire Moves
One of the most consistent setups over my 28 years of trading is the weekend strategy.
While everyone else checks out on a Friday afternoon, I start looking for stocks that are up big and holding into the close.
It can’t just be anything, though. I want to see a positive news catalyst and strong volume.
On Friday (Oct. 23) Nautilus Biotechnology Inc. (NASDAQ: NAUT) checked pretty much every box.
NAUT has been uptrending all month. The company reports earnings tomorrow and is getting hyped on a popular podcast.
Friday’s move was also a multi-month breakout.
I took a trade on this one on Friday going into the close. Tomorrow, I’ll let you know how it worked.
If you are interested in learning this strategy, I’ve put together a short video explaining everything.
Check it out below…
Make this trade on a Friday afternoon (you’ll thank me Monday morning).
Catalyst Watch
I’m paying attention to four things right now.
- The market is due for a big correction (or even a crash).
- The Middle East conflict is still wreaking havoc on oil prices. I’m sure you feel the knock-on effect at the pumps.
- The upcoming midterm elections. The market hates uncertainty, right?
- Wednesday’s FOMC meeting, where the Fed decides what to do about interest rates.
In other words, it’s a busy time for big picture catalysts
Key Takeaway
Pump and dumps are alive and… still scammy as ever.
It’s part of the game that every trader should understand, if for no other reason than to see just how gullible so many people out there are.
Your job as a trader is to learn how to take advantage of the opportunities.
Remember, almost all of these companies are terrible, terrible businesses.
But they’ll continue to get pumped by shady chat rooms.
Study up, because this isn’t the last pump and dump you’ll ever see.
Cheers,
– Tim Sykes
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