Several members of Congress made stock trades that involved oil stocks and defense stocks days before Russia invaded Ukraine and started an international conflict that was one of the top storylines of 2022.
Heres a look at how much one member of Congress may have made from the questionably timed trades.
What Happened: Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) was one of several members of Congress who disclosed trades of stocks in the oil and defense sectors around the time of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
Greene disclosed the trades that saw purchases of Lockheed Martin LMT and Chevron Corp CVX days before Russia invaded Ukraine.
A filing showed that Greene bought the following on Feb. 22, 2022
$1,000 to $15,000 stock in Lockheed Martin
$1,000 to $15,000 stock in Chevron
The purchases were seen as controversial at the time, as the disclosure showed they were bought shortly before the war began. The purchases also came before Green tweeted about war profits.
War and rumors of war is incredibly profitable and convenient, Greene tweeted on Feb. 23, 2022.
Members of Congress spoke out on the unusual timing of Greenes trades.
Add this to the list of why members of Congress should never be allowed to trade stocks, Rep.Ilhan Omar (D-MN)tweeted.
Rep.Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) referenced legislation to ban members of Congress from trading when hearing of the news of Greenes trades.
In related news, weve heard that were soon getting a hearing date on banning members of Congress from trading individual stock while in office. Theres still a lot of resistance in Congress, though. Keep pushing, Ocasio-Cortez tweeted at the time.
UnusualWhales highlighted that many of the members of Congress had never bought or sold energy or oil stocks prior to taking positions before sanctions and an import ban were placed on Russia and made oil stocks one of the top-performing sectors in 2022.
Politicians are making multiple trades on private information, expecting a rally. This is inexcusable, UnusualWhales said at the time.
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How Much Did Greene Make?: Oil and defense stocks were two of the better-performing sectors in 2022 due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. This came with the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY posting its worstyear since 2008.
Taking a look at the two trades of Chevron and Lockheed Martin shows that Greens timing may have been hugely profitable.
Chevron shares traded between $130.52 and $137 on Feb. 22, the day it was purchased by Greene. Assuming the purchase was made at the intraday high, Greene would have purchased between 7.30 shares and 109.49 shares based on the $1,000 to $15,000 purchase amount.
Chevron shares trade at $162.85 at the time of writing. This means the purchase by Greene would now be worth between $1,188.80 and $17,830.45. This represents a return of 18.9% in just over a year.
Interestingly enough, Chevron has a 52-week range of $130.52 to $189.68, which means Greene bought Chevron stock on the day it hit its lowest price over the last year.
Lockheed Martin shares traded between $385.07 and $393.42 on Feb. 22, the day it was purchased by Greene. Assuming the purchase was made at the intraday high, Green would have purchased between 2.60 shares and 38.95 shares based on the $1,000 to $15,000 purchase amount.
Lockheed Martin shares trade at $475.63 at the time of writing. This means the purchase by Greene would now be worth between $1,236.64 and $18,525.79. This represents a return of 23.5% in just over a year.
Shares of Lockheed Martin have traded between $373.67 and $498.95 over the last 52 weeks.
For comparison, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, which tracks the S&P 500, is down 6.5% over the same time period.
Greens purchases of $2,000 to $30,000 are now worth an estimated $2,425.44 to $36,356.24, netting a profit of $425.44 to $6,356.24. While the amounts may not sound like much, this is a return of 21.2% over a year period.
The same investment in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust would have turned into a loss of $130 to a loss of $1,950 with a loss of 6.5%.
Greene may have won with her trades in Chevron and Lockheed Martin, but she is still down significantly on her purchase of Digital World Acquisition DWAC shares. Greene bought a stake of $15,000 to $50,000on Oct. 22, 2021, in the SPAC that is seeking to merge with Trump Media & Technology Group. Shares of DWAC traded between $67.96 and $118.80 on the date of Greenes purchase, with her average price rumored at $94.20. Shares of DWAC trade at $15.04 at the time of writing.
The profits by Greene on the questionably-timedstock purchases come as Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) recently introduced new legislation nicknamed the PELOSI Act that would ban members of Congress and their spouses from trading stocks and options while in office.
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