As President Donald Trump stood on a podium in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, he went apparently off script to name check a pair of companies. Pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, which he called “a great company,” was touted for investing $3.5 billion in a manufacturing facility. And Nokia, he said, was investing $30 million to expand its semiconductor packaging and testing facility.
The companies got the shout-outs for bringing jobs to the state and for their investments in American facilities. But when Trump talks positively about publicly traded companies, skeptics start probing deeper.
Since the beginning of his second term, Trump has mentioned many companies that Americans later learned he had invested in personally. Often the disclosure of those stock purchases doesn’t come about until well after the favorable mention. (He has not disclosed any ownership stake in Nokia, but holds shares in Eli Lilly.)
Trump’s assets are in a trust managed by his children. However, unlike for past presidents, it’s not a blind trust. He knows what is in it. According to reporting by PBS, having a leader who appears to profit so directly from the office is “an unprecedented practice for a sitting U.S. president in the modern era,” even though there is no specific law against it.
A favorable mention by the executive branch can be a big boost for a company. Here’s a look at what has happened with other businesses Trump has talked up in speeches and interviews.
Micron
On March 26 of this year, Trump went on Fox News’ “The Five” and said he had recently met with executives at Minnesota-based semiconductor company Micron. “I just left the head of Micron. It’s one of the hottest companies,” Trump said. What he left out was he had purchased between $50,000 and $100,000 in the company’s stock the day before — and had bought shares three times prior to that, bringing his total investments to between $217,000 and $530,000.
Shares of Micron since that date have gone up more than 230%. Much of those increases, however, are due to analyst upgrades and the AI rally. Shares were up more than 12% Thursday following a gangbusters earnings beat after the market closed Wednesday.
Shares of Texas-based computer hardware company Dell have increased more than 230% since Trump urged Americans to “buy a Dell” on Feb. 19. An account in President Donald Trump’s name bought up to $5.1 million worth of Dell stock in the first quarter, with the first purchase being made on Feb 10. That purchase also came before the Pentagon awarded Dell a $9.7-billion Air Force contract.
Intel
California tech giant and chip maker Intel shares have soared since Trump announced last year that the federal government was taking a 9.9% ownership stake in the company. New chip-supplies and additional cheerleading by Trump have resulted in the stock increasing 229% year to date. Trump has benefitted from that surge, having bought shares in the company six times in March of this year.
Trump not only talked up the Peter Thiel-founded, Miami-based defense tech company in April, he went so far as to name check the company’s ticker symbol in a Truth Social post. That mention reversed a stock slide the company was experiencing at the time in just moments. Palantir is one of the few stocks that has continued to lose ground since that mention, but that’s more due to AI concerns and a particularly harsh note from investor Michael Burry, which called Palantir “a sand castle supported only by AI applications narrative.” Trump purchased at least $260,000 worth of the company’s stock during the first quarter of 2026. Palantir provides the surveillance technology that powers the administration’s immigration crackdown through Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Apple
Trump has had a sometimes-rocky relationship with Silicon Valley tech giant Apple, but when CEO Tim Cook announced his retirement, Trump wrote a glowing review of the business leader, calling him “an incredible guy!!!” Shares have gained only a little ground since then. Trump has bought shares in the company eight times so far this year.
Chris Morris is a veteran journalist with more than 35 years of experience at many of the internet's biggest news outlets. In addition to his activities as a writer, reporter and editor, Chris is also a frequent panel moderator and speaker at major conferences, including CES and South by Southwest.
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