"Big Short" Investor Tweeted "Sell" and Made a $1.6 Billion Bet Against the Stock Market. He Closed It for a 40% Loss. The S&P 500 Is Up 42% Since Then.

The investor immortalized in "The Big Short" for his legendary bet against the housing market has spent years warning of imminent doom. In January 2023, he posted a single ominous word on X: "Sell." By August, he put his money where his tweets were, placing what appeared to be a $1.6 billion short position against the S&P 500 and Nasdaq (actually about $26.5 million in put options). The market did not cooperate. By November 2023, Burry closed the position for an estimated 40% loss. Since then? The S&P 500 has rallied another 42%, blasting past all-time highs. One analysis found that following Burry's bearish tweets instead of just buying the S&P 500 would have cost investors annualized returns of 34%. His post-2008 prediction accuracy? About 29%, according to one study. Turns out being right once about the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression doesn't grant you permanent oracle status. The "Big Short" became the "Big Wrong."