#Top Ten: Weekend reads: Robinhood and the merry Reddit self-styled ‘degenerates’

Individual traders have banded together through Reddit’s WallStreetBets message board (where some users refer to themselves as “degenerates”) to purchase shares of heavily shorted stocks, which has led to a furious scramble among hedge funds and other short sellers to buy shares and cover their short positions. The feeding frenzy led to year-to-date gains of 1,582% for GameStop Corp.
GME,
+74.56%,
501% for AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc.
AMC,
+66.05%
and 107% for Bed Bath Beyond Inc.
BBBY,
+6.64%
as of 10 a.m. ET on Jan. 29, to name only three examples.

GameStop had short positions exceeding 100% of shares outstanding. But there is another way to gauge short interest — dollars. By that measure, Tesla Inc.
TSLA,
-6.00%
was the most heavily shorted stock, with $60.9 billion in bets against the shares as of the close on Jan. 27, with $60.9 billion.

Brett Arends wrote an open letter to the novice traders who (hopefully) profited from the short squeeze in which he congratulates them but also reminds them that investing isn’t gambling.

Here’s more coverage of short squeezes:

• Short sellers down a net $54 billion on U.S. positions so far this year, data provider says
• It isn’t just GameStop: Here are some of the other heavily shorted stocks shooting higher

Robinhood’s big counter move and the reaction

On Jan. 28, Robinhood halted purchases of shares of GameStop, while continuing to allow clients to sell shares. The move was very unusual. It is normal for stock exchanges to suspend all trading of shares of a company if important news has completely disrupted trading. John Buckingham, the editor of the Prudent Speculator who has three decades’ experience managing money, said he had “never seen a situation” in which a broker had halted one side of trading.

Other brokerage firms restricted trading in GameStop, AMC and other stocks.

Robinhood reversed course and the GameStop buying spree resumed on Jan. 29. The unprecedented broad short-squeeze activity and trading restrictions and the reactions to it continue to unfold, so check back on MarketWatch for the latest developments.

• Lawmakers demand action on GameStop saga, Robinhood ban

• Mark Cuban, Dave Portnoy, AOC and others react to Robinhood restricting trades on GameStop and AMC

• Barron’s: ‘Big Short’ Investor Who Once Touted GameStop Calls Rally ‘Unnatural, Insane, and Dangerous’

More to consider amid short squeezes

Many novice investors have helped send shares of many previously out-of-favor stocks soaring. But even if you are an experienced investor, you probably don’t know all the new terms being bandied about.

William Watts explains why veteran professional investors are worried about the overall health of the stock market in light of the wild purchasing of heavily shorted stocks and related options trading.

More market coverage:

• ‘Taxes are usually an afterthought:’ GameStop’s wild ride will leave some investors with a huge tax bill

• Is GameStop’s wild ride due to market manipulation by social-media users — or are they exercising free speech?

• The ‘ice is cracking’ on the bull market, one stock-market analyst warns

‘Like the Berkshires, but warmer’

Everyone wants to find the perfect location to spend their golden years. Silvia Ascarelli suggests three possible locations for a couple that lives in Northern New Jersey and seeks a warmer area with lakes, mountains and, hopefully, skiing possibilities.

Try the MarketWatch “where should I retire” tool for your own customized search.

Be careful with advice on retirement saving — and spending

Richard Quinn punches holes in some of the cliché advice given to people building nest eggs for financial independence. For example, advice about withdrawing or spending a certain percentage each year leaves out a person’s level of expenses. Quinn shares a concise list of things to consider as you plan and prepare for retirement.

More on retirement planning and living:

• Should you use a Monte Carlo simulation to determine if your retirement savings will last?

• What robots will mean for your retirement

• How the U.S. can avoid a future where millions of retired Americans can’t meet their basic needs

Clean-tech investing

The shift to clean energy is just getting started. Jeff Reeves lists five exchange-traded funds for investors who wish to go along for the ride.

Swimming in debt, and hopefully out of it

Alessandra Malito and financial advisers help a woman who is 50 and writes that she, her husband and son are “are living hand to mouth” and she doesn’t know how to save for retirement.

Janet Yellen and your retirement

With a new president, Democratic control of Congress and Janet Yellen as Treasury Secretary, here are some changes that may be in store to help Americans be better prepared for retirement.

Stock picks from a five-star money manager

Barbara Kollmeyer interviews Tom Plumb, the manager of the Plumb Balanced Fund, who recommends MercadoLibre Inc.
MELI,
-5.05%
and four other stocks.

MarketWatch Premium

For MarketWatch subscribers, two microcap fund managers explain their strategies, while Mark Hulbert shares the surprising conclusions of an academic study on market volatility and investment timing.

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