Some of the best-known meme stocks were GameStop, AMC, BlackBerry, Bed Bath & Beyond, Clover Health, and Virgin Galactic. Yes—new names kept becoming meme stocks after February 2021, with later waves of retail hype continuing to push certain smaller or volatile stocks into the meme-stock bucket.

What counts as a meme stock

A meme stock is usually a stock that gets heavily driven by online retail attention rather than just fundamentals. The meme-stock label often comes from social media buzz, trading forums, and sudden surges in volume or price.

Early wave names

The original 2021 craze centered on names like GameStop and AMC, with BlackBerry and other heavily discussed retail favorites also joining the conversation. GameStop’s January 2021 surge became the clearest symbol of the movement.

After Feb 2021

Yes, meme-stock behavior did not stop in February 2021. Later examples included stocks like Virgin Galactic and other names that got pulled into retail-driven trading cycles after the first wave cooled off. More recent market commentary in 2025 and 2026 still treats meme stocks as an active phenomenon, showing that the label kept evolving beyond the original February 2021 period.

Easy way to think about it

  • Original meme stocks: GameStop, AMC, BlackBerry.
  • Later meme-stock candidates: Virgin Galactic and other socially hyped names.
  • Ongoing pattern: any stock can become a meme stock if it catches enough retail attention fast enough.

TL;DR

The classic meme stocks were GameStop and AMC, with BlackBerry and others also part of the 2021 wave. And yes, plenty of stocks became meme stocks after February 2021 as the phenomenon kept repeating in new forms.