Congressional stock trading proves to be a lucrative business among U.S. politicians, with many Senators and members of Congress seeing their net worths reach millions with the help of the stock market.
One of the savviest and most well known traders among the members of Congress is Nancy Pelosi, who rarely seems to make a mistake and has often been credited with timing the market to perfection.
In particular, the representative for San Francisco, with her Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) stock trades back in November 2023, garnered the attention of investors worldwide due to her substantial gains, which vastly exceeded her annual salary.
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Meanwhile, her most recent trading session on August 8 brought her unrealized gains of $4.1 million in just one day as the stock market continued its recovery from the recent slump.
This helped propel Pelosi among the top three U.S. politicians, with stock trades contributing to her overall net worth and allowing the 52nd Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives to overtake Republican Senator Mitt Romney.
So, which trades exactly did the former House Speaker conduct recently to help her increase her wealth?
July was a particularly active month for Pelosi
As Pelosi revealed in her most recent filings on July 2 and July 30, she decided to increase her artificial intelligence (AI) stocks exposure with an additional purchase of 20,000 NVDA shares in two instances on June 26 and July 26, with a combined $10 million worth, with Nvidia capturing the largest market share among the chipmakers.
Furthermore, on June 24, she decided to invest $5 million to purchase 20 call options of Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) stock, each with a strike price of $800 and an expiration date of June 20, 2025, with her AVGO trade Pelosi is possibly seeking entry into data centers producers.
| Date | Transaction Type | Company (Ticker) | Details | Amount Invested |
| June 26, 2024 | Stock Purchase | Nvidia (NVDA) | Purchased 20,000 shares. | $10 million |
| July 26, 2024 | Stock Purchase | Nvidia (NVDA) | Purchased 20,000 shares. | $10 million |
| June 24, 2024 | Call Options Purchase | Broadcom (AVGO) | Purchased 20 call options, strike price $800, expiration June 20, 2025 | $5 million |
Notably, both of these trades are currently at a loss for Pelosi due to the recent pullback in the semiconductor sector by over $500 billion, fueled by U.S. exports curb on China and Trump’s comments on Taiwan.
Nancy Pelosi’s strategic stock divestments in 2024
The first trade, on June 24, involved the sale of 2,500 Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares, which are worth approximately $500,000, with her sale most probably motivated by the concerns of the electric vehicle (EV) makers’ growth prospects, and whether Elon Musk can deliver on his promises on Full Self-Driving (FSD).
Taking into account that July has been a historically strong month for the stock market, Pelosi potentially timed her sales to maximize her profits during this month.
On July 2, she sold 2,000 Visa (NYSE: V) shares for a profit of around $1 million at the time. Pelosi potentially looked to avoid potential adverse effects from recently underwhelming economic reports in the U.S., as V stock has closely mirrored its performance historically, especially with high interest rates.
Pelosi’s most recent trade was also a sale: She decided to sell 5,000 Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) shares that have earned her about $5 million, potentially betting on a weaker-than-expected Q4 report.
| Date | Company (Ticker) | Shares Sold | Approximate Value | Potential Motivation |
| June 24 | Tesla (TSLA) | 2,500 | $500,000 | Concerns about EV growth prospects and doubts about Elon Musk’s promises on Full Self-Driving (FSD) |
| July 2 | Visa (V) | 2,000 | $1,000,000 | To avoid adverse effects from underwhelming economic reports and high interest rates |
| July 26 | Microsoft (MSFT) | 5,000 | $5,000,000 | Potentially betting on a weaker-than-expected Q4 report |
Interestingly, two of the above stock sales (TSLA and V) have posted gains since the California-based Representative decided to offload them, potentially expecting their July earnings report to come weaker than expected and thus negatively impact their stock prices.
However, looking at the sales-to-purchases ratio in 2024 so far, it’s clear that purchases significantly exceed sales, with $12.93 million in purchases compared to just $4.13 million in sales.
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