GameStop Fires Its CEO, Names Ryan Cohen Executive Chairman

Cecilia D'Anastasio, Bloomberg News

The GameStop Corp. logo on a laptop computer arranged in Hastings-On-Hudson, New York, U.S., on Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. GameStop Corp. advanced on Friday and was on track to recoup much of Thursday’s $11 billion blow after Robinhood Markets Inc. and other brokerages eased trading restrictions on the video-game retailer. Photographer: Tiffany Hagler-Geard/Bloomberg , Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- GameStop Corp., the struggling video-game retailer, fired Matt Furlong, its chief executive officer for the past two years, and said Chairman Ryan Cohen will take on a new executive role. The shares plunged the most in two years.

Cohen’s responsibilities as executive chairman of the video-game chain will include management oversight and capital allocation, the company said Wednesday in a statement. GameStop’s general counsel, Mark Robinson, will become general manager and principal executive officer.

The money-losing retailer also reported fiscal first-quarter sales that fell short of analysts’ estimates. Revenue in the period ended April 29 fell to $1.24 billion, missing estimates of $1.34 billion. The loss in the quarter narrowed to 14 cents and was smaller than the 17 cents analysts projected.

Shares of GameStop fell as much as 23% in early New York trading Thursday. The shares were up 41% this year through the close Wednesday.

GameStop has struggled to adapt to the increasing share of game sales conducted online and away from stores. Annual sales have plunged from a recent peak of $9.36 billion to $5.93 billion last year.

Furlong delivered a profitable holiday quarter for the company, in part due to job cuts and store closings. Cohen said at the time that GameStop would become a much healthier business. The company said in a filing Wednesday that while Furlong was fired as CEO, his resignation from the board “did not result from any disagreement with the company.” GameStop did not provide a reason for the termination.

“We remain convinced that GameStop is doomed, with declining physical software sales and a shift of sales to subscription services and digital downloads sealing its fate,” Michael Pachter, analyst at Wedbush Securities, said in a note. “We don’t see a turnaround on the horizon without capable management. The lack of clear direction and the callous termination of Mr. Furlong all but ensures that Mr. Cohen will have difficulty attracting a qualified replacement.”

Read more: GameStop’s Cost Discipline Can’t Stop Cash Burn: Preview

Cohen is the chain’s largest shareholder with 12% of the stock. Shortly after GameStop announced Furlong’s departure, Cohen posted a message on Twitter that appears to be a play on his name.

Cohen is the founder of Chewy.com. Despite a historic run-up in GameStop shares in 2021 during the meme-stock craze, he has failed to capitalize on interest in the brand. Management has unsuccessfully experimented with Web3 and a variety of business models for its brick-and-mortar stores.

In its filing, the company said it continues to focus on “three overarching goals: establishing omnichannel retail experience, achieving profitability and leveraging brand equity to support growth.”

(Updates shares in fourth paragraph, adds analyst comment in seventh paragraph)