If You Invested $1,000 In Nintendo Stock When Pokemon Go Was Released, Here's How Much You'd Have Today

Since 2016, gamers have been trying to “Catch ‘Em All” on the mobile game “Pokemon Go.” The popular game is one of many ways the Pokemon brand has expanded throughout its 25+ year history of video games, consumer products, trading cards and more.

Here’s a look at how an investment in Nintendo Co NTDOY has done sine the mobile game was released.

What Happened: July 6, 2023 marks the seventh anniversary of “Pokemon Go,” a game that generated billions of dollars in revenue annually at its peak.

The game was released and downloaded by millions and led to a spike in outdoor activities as it encouraged gamers to get outside and explore.

Pokemon Go is celebrating its seventh anniversary with new Pokemon, timed events and new in-game items.

The game was released by Niantic in 2016, a company that was previously spun out of Alphabet Inc GOOGGOOGL. Investors in Niantic include Alphabet, Nintendo, NetEase and Coatue. The gaming company was valued at $9 billion in 2021.

At the launch of “Pokemon Go” and its peak popularity, a popular stock for investors to trade was Nintendo. The video game company is the 33% owner of The Pokemon Company and a partial owner of Niantic, making it a potential play on the success of the game.

The game continues to update and see strong user metrics seven years after being released.

Beyond the gameplay, Pokemon continues to release new entertainment content and video games, which are exclusive to Nintendo. As The Pokemon Company is privately held, Nintendo remains the key way to get a piece of this global brand that brought its first video game to market in Japan in 1996 and North America in 1998.

Related Link:10 Best Selling Video Game Franchises Of All Time 

Investing $1,000 in Nintendo Stock: Nintendo shares traded at a high of $17.71 on July 6, 2016. An investor could have purchased 56.47 shares of the gaming company at the time “Pokemon Go” was released.

A five-for-one stock split in October 2022 would have turned the investment into 282.35 shares.

The 282.35 shares would be valued at $3,088.91 today, based on a price of $10.94 for Nintendo stock at the time of writing. This represents a return of 208.9% since the game was released, not including dividends.

The same $1,000 investment in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF SPY, which tracks the S&P 500, would be worth $2,086.02. This represents a return of 108.6% since the game was released, not including dividends.

In the case of this hypothetical investment, it seems that teaming up with characters such as Pikachu, Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur in the quest to be the very best, was indeed a destiny fulfilled.

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