Is a Plano oil driller the next to attract Reddit traders fancy?
Torchlight Energy Resources Inc., a tiny Plano-based oil company touted on Reddit as a possible short squeeze, moved quickly to cash in on its sudden popularity by selling about $100 million in new shares. The oil driller that started the year with a market valuation of $71 million disclosed the share sale in a federal filing late Monday. Torchlight, which has seen its valuation more than double in just the past week to more than $1 billion, said it may issue another $150 million in stock. Torchlight shares plunged 29% to $7 on Tuesday in New York for the biggest daily loss in almost 11 months. Chairman George McCabe was the companys largest investor as of Feb. 1 with a 10.6% stake; CEO John Brda was the No. 3 holder with 1.6% as of mid-March. The company, which closed at an all-time high on Monday, was incorporated in 2007 in Nevada as Pole Perfect Studios Inc., which planned to offer fitness classes it said were centered around a firemans pole often found in gentlemans clubs.  Torchlight has been inactive for more than four years, according to data from Texass main oil-industry regulator, and the company warned as recently as last month that it might go out of business. The explorer has accumulated almost $114 million in losses since its inception and expects more losses going forward.