Did you buy Kodak stock after Tuesday's big announcement? It has been shooting up since the iconic company announced it is getting into the pharmaceutical business.

What You Need To Know

  • Kodak stock shot up on Wednesday after the announcement Tuesday that it would be making pharmaceuticals

  • "Circuit breakers" had to be used on Wall Street to slow trading

  • The stock price went from $2 on Friday to more than $50 on Wednesday

On Friday, Kodak's stock languished at $2 per share. But on Wednesday, trading had to be stopped several times as its stock roared beyond $50 per share. They had to use what are called "circuit breakers" a dozen times to slow trading.

All of this after Kodak accepted a federal loan worth $765 million to turn Eastman Business Park into a generic drug ingredient factory and launch a new chapter in the company.

Kodak effectively doubled in size when it became the first to take the loan in the Trump administration's economic development response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

If you're wondering why it may work, and why Kodak stock is surging, the president's advisor spelled it out.

"Because what this guy's going to do with his vision is take the money that this guy's gonna give him and within a relatively short time, we're going to be able to make in this country 25 percent of the ingredients for your generic drugs, which is 90 percent of the medicines that you take," said Dr. Peter Navarro, trade advisor to President Trump.

The good vibe created by the news has spread throughout Rochester, making its way to neighborhood diners where Rochester residents started their day. One of those we spoke with, Neville Brown, was named for his uncle — a Kodak retiree.

"It should create more jobs in the city. We definitely need more jobs. It's a good thing for the town, the city," said Brown.

I think it's a good thing that Kodak is making pharmaceuticals to help out with COVID-19 because people are dying," said Henry, a Rochester resident.

Analysts are still watching closely. They know Kodak's history with the now-defunct Sterling Drug and its decline over the past two generations. This is a company that went bankrupt as digital cameras defeated it. One Forbes magazine advisor told readers to stay away from Kodak.

But the company is still here and its stock has climbed an incredible 1,000 percent since the announcement of Kodak Pharmaceutical.