The stock market is never dull, but sometimes securities and market moves become truly unusual. These oddities may not grab headlines, but they fascinate with their speed, magnitude, and sheer weirdness. Here are five examples of bizarre security scenarios.
Monkey Business at Inotiv Inc.
Inotiv Inc., a company still trading with a market value of US$9 million, has seen its shares drop about 52% this year and 90% over one year. Yet in 2022, it was worth US$600 million. The firm imported monkeys for medical lab experiments, a necessary but controversial business. However, Inotiv faced investigations by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice for allegedly acquiring long-tailed macaques from the wild in Cambodia, with suppliers labeling them as captive-bred to bypass trade restrictions. The scandal caused the stock to plummet, and it never recovered. Now in the drug discovery business, Inotiv reported US$120 million in revenue in the first quarter of 2026 but remains unprofitable.
Volkswagen's Unprecedented Short Squeeze
In 2008, Volkswagen AG, then worth about US$50 billion, briefly became the world's most valuable company. Porsche quietly acquired a 74.1% stake, and a German state entity owned another 20%, drastically reducing the free float. During the financial crisis, many hedge funds had heavily shorted VW stock. The Porsche news triggered the largest short squeeze in history (until GameStop). Short sellers scrambled to buy millions of shares, but none were available. VW shares surged from about $338 to over $1,608, giving it a market value of roughly US$595 billion. Hedge funds lost an estimated US$40 billion. Today, VW shares are down 10% this year, and the squeeze is a business school case study. If VW were still worth $595 billion, it would rank only 58th in North America.
Bigfoot's $10 Billion Valuation
Bigfoot Project Investments Inc., once dedicated to finding Bigfoot, now focuses on Bigfoot documentaries and merchandise. Its stock trades for fractions of a penny, but in 2016, it had a set value exceeding US$10 billion for one day. The stock had a wide bid-ask spread, so the exchange set a price halfway between the bid and ask. With the ask price in the thousands, the market capitalization at the midpoint surpassed $10 billion. Media outlets picked up the story, delighting Bigfoot enthusiasts. The company, now called Lord Global Corp., is based in Henderson, Nevada. In 1987, the comedy film Harry and the Hendersons featured a Bigfoot character, adding a pop culture connection.
Other Strange Securities
Beyond these examples, the stock market has seen other oddities, such as companies with no revenue soaring on hype, or stocks moving on tweets. Each story underscores the unpredictable nature of investing, where fortunes can vanish as quickly as they appear.
These tales serve as reminders that while markets can be rational, they are also subject to human emotion, manipulation, and sheer chance. Investors should approach such unusual securities with caution, as the line between opportunity and folly is often thin.
