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GoPro stock surges after YouTuber Markiplier takes 8.5% stake
ReGoPro stock surges after YouTuber Markiplier takes 8.5% stake
Shares of GoPro jumped more than 46% on Monday and continued climbing in premarket trading Tuesday after Bloomberg reported that YouTube star Markiplier, real name Mark Fischbach, acquired an 8.5% stake in the struggling action camera maker, making him the largest individual shareholder.
Shares of GoPro Inc. surged this week after Bloomberg reported that Mark Fischbach, the YouTube megastar known as Markiplier, acquired an 8.5% stake in the struggling action camera maker. The purchase makes him the company's largest individual shareholder and has reignited interest in the stock among retail investors.
GoPro shares closed Monday up more than 46% at 87 cents per share following the weekend news. In premarket trading Tuesday, the stock climbed another 93% to just over $1.69 per share, reaching levels not seen since early January. At one point during premarket trading, shares were up more than 100% on top of the previous day's gain.
Fischbach, who has more than 38.9 million YouTube subscribers for his video game playthroughs and commentary, told Bloomberg he began buying GoPro shares after concluding the stock was undervalued. His interest in the company grew after using its cameras to capture behind-the-scenes footage for "Iron Lung," an indie horror film he produced and directed earlier this year. The movie, made on a budget of around $3 million after major Hollywood studios rejected it, went on to earn $51 million at the box office.
Fischbach said GoPro's introduction of its first "cinema camera," the Mission 1 Pro ILS, particularly caught his attention. "It blows my mind what it can do in such a small package," he told Bloomberg. "They have a big future with this camera coming out opening up a new segment for them." He added: "I saw the stock and where it was, I was like that seems undervalued. It's just something I've been cooking in the background; I want the company to succeed."
While Fischbach does not currently hold a position with GoPro, the news of his stake may have given the company a lifeline on Nasdaq. In July, GoPro received a notice from the exchange that its stock price had traded below the $1 minimum threshold for 30 consecutive days, triggering a 180-day window to regain compliance or face delisting. With shares now trading well above $1, the company appears to have cleared that hurdle for the time being.
The stock surge comes amid significant headwinds for the company. GoPro reported revenue of $105 million for the second quarter of 2026, a 31% drop year over year. Camera unit sales fell 38% to 291,000 units. Even after Monday's 46% gain, shares were still down more than 37% for the year and 43% over the past 12 months. Over the past five years, the stock has lost more than 91% of its value.
The company, once a darling of the gadget world in the early 2010s, now faces intense competition from rival action camera makers like Insta360, drone manufacturers such as DJI, and everyday smartphones, which have become increasingly rugged with industry-wide water resistance on most flagship models.
It remains to be seen how long the Markiplier bump can last. The surge has revived interest in the stock, but analysts and investors are watching whether the company can sustain its share price above the Nasdaq threshold and address the underlying business challenges that have weighed on the stock for years.
