As meme stocks pursue a new alpha dog, AMC and GameStop have soared.

Meme stocks reversed roles on Thursday, with AMC Entertainment's AMC, +23.74 percent surge also lifting shares of retail stock GameStop GME, +13.61 percent.

Individual investors expressed a frothy interest in AMC during the day, as users on Reddit and Twitter pushed the #AMCSqueeze hashtag, and mentions of the stock in general dominated retail trader conversation on Thursday.

“We didn't have to wait this long for these insignificant figures... the idea you must grasp is: SHORTS MUST COVER, WE OWN THE FLOAT!” read one of the most famous posts on the r/amcstock subreddit.

According to FactSet numbers, AMC shares reached an intraday high of $14.20, the highest since March 18, and ended the day up 23.7 percent at $12.77.

The stock rose after the company concluded its previously announced 43 million share at-the-market equity offering, raising $438 million for the struggling theatre chain.

AMC's 23.74 percent increase was its highest one-day percent gain since Jan. 29, 2021, when it gained 53.65 percent, according to Dow Jones reports.

After soaring inflation data spooked markets, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.29 percent, S&P 500 index SPX, +1.22 percent, and Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +0.72 percent snapped a three-day losing streak while trimming weekly losses.

An analyst at a well-known broker-dealer for day trading platforms gave AMC's day a fair assessment.

Wedbush Securities' Alicia Reese said, "Retail demand for AMC shares continues to elevate the share price, and it is trading at a multiple unrelated to the company's fundamentals." “However, AMC is wise to take advantage of the retail interest and sell its shares at a premium, particularly if the proceeds are used to pay down debt.

Reese emphasised that the stock sale was already factored into her “Hold” ranking. The quicker it can pay down its debt, the sooner it can resume its previous growth strategy of upgrading its European circuit and expanding in the Middle East,” she said.

GameStop, which is normally the Alpha to AMC on the meme stock strength ladder, jumped 13.6 percent higher on the day. Many social media gurus who see the videogame retailer as a value gamble, on the other hand, were sceptical of the possibility that they were putting another squeeze on AMC's coattails.

“Amc is FUD and has nothing to do with us,” one user wrote on r/Superstonk, a message board for GameStop investors, using the derogatory acronym for "fear, confusion, and doubt."