Shares of Shopify (SHOP) fell 6% on the day that the Canadian e-commerce company
completed a 10-for-1 stock split.
Shopify’s stock dropped 5.6% to $42.59 in Toronto trading, bringing its decline for the year to
73% as its business slows coming out of the pandemic and investors abandon stocks of high
growth, unprofitable companies.
Shopify is the one of several technology companies to split its stock this year. Amazon (AMZN)
and Alphabet (GOOGL) are each splitting their stock on a 20-for-1 basis, and Tesla (TSLA) has
announced plans for a 3-for-1 stock split.
So far, the stock splits have not attracted retail investors as markets around the world continue
to selloff. Amazon’s share price fell in the days immediately after it split its stock at the start of
June.
Shopify’s stock split was approved by shareholders at the company’s annual meeting held on
June 7. During that meeting, a proposal to give the company’s chief executive Tobi Lutke a
special “founder share” passed with 54% shareholder approval. Under the plan, Lutke retains
40% of the votes at the Ottawa-based company.