Rite Aid Hopes to Draw In Everyday Investors to Revive Its Shares

(Bloomberg) — Rite Aid Corp. is hoping that the current iteration of meme-stock mania can provide a boost for its beaten-down shares.

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The pharmacy chain, which has seen its stock decline by about 38% over the past year, plans to host a virtual event catering to retail investors on Aug. 24, according to a statement. Its chief executive and head of finance are slated to appear.

“This is an important stakeholder group for our company, and we want to continue to build upon our engagement with them,” said Terri Hickey, a spokesperson for Rite Aid.

While many companies have seen their stock prices take off thanks to churn among retail traders influenced by online chatter, there can be downsides as well. Increased volatility can also create large swings lower — and Rite Aid is already trailing the small-cap pack, with the Russell 2000 Index down by 15% from a year ago.

Recently, individual investors have tended to ignore Rite Aid, compared with other stocks that have become day-trader darlings.

Retail investors bought just $12.6 million of Rite Aid shares over the past year, data from Vanda Research show. That’s less than current meme-stock favorites like housewares retailer Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. and movie-theater chain AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. lured in Monday’s session alone.

On Tuesday, investors appeared to be taking a wait-and-see approach to Rite Aid’s gambit. Its shares advanced 1.1% to $9.19 at 1:15 p.m. — modestly outperforming the broader market on the day.

Rite Aid’s market capitalization is hovering at about $511 million, making it much smaller than competing pharmacy giants like CVS Health Corp., worth about $136 billion, and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., with a market value of roughly $34 billion.

(Updates with company comment in third paragraph.)