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A Delicatessen in New Jersey Holds a $100 Million Value on the Stock Market
Credit: Unsplash
Not claiming any expertise in investing, my last “investment” was an electric toothbrush to cut down on dentist bills. It is commonly understood that prominent companies on the US Stock Exchange are usually large corporations such as Microsoft, Tesla, and Apple, to name a few. However, it seems that things are not always straightforward, exemplified by a modest deli in New Jersey.
Your Hometown Deli, a humble delicatessen located in Paulsboro, New Jersey, serves as the sole asset of Hometown International Inc., a company in the food service supply sector. In a typical scenario, such a company might not even be publicly traded, let alone carry any significant value on Wall Street. Yet, in our eccentric reality, Hometown International currently boasts a market capitalization of $100 million, despite only generating $35,748 in profits over the past two years.
Referring to Hometown International (HWIN), which owns a single deli in rural New Jersey, investor David Einhorn mentioned in a client letter, “HWIN reached a market cap of $113 million on February 8. The largest shareholder, CEO/CFO/Treasurer, and Director is also the wrestling coach at the nearby high school. The pastrami they serve must be truly exceptional.”
This is the New Jersey deli currently valued at $100 million in the market under $HWIN (only one store with $35k in annual sales) pic.twitter.com/g8qgOFh5lV
— Nick Maggiulli (@dollarsanddata) April 15, 2021
How did this unusual scenario unfold? The specifics remain somewhat unclear. By all indications, Hometown is considered a fairly average low-tier stock. Fewer than a hundred of its shares are traded daily, if any are exchanged at all. The deli was closed for a significant portion of the past year due to the pandemic. Speculation points to potential involvement from Reddit users, reminiscent of the notable GameStop surge, although no definitive influencers have been identified at present. Perhaps, it genuinely is due to their exceptional pastrami. I wouldn’t mind giving it a try.
