NEW YORK (AP) — Gamestop CEO Ryan Cohen said the struggling video game retailer would focus on cost reduction and long-term profitability at an annual shareholder meeting Monday.
Cohen added that this would involve a “smaller network of stores”, suggesting that no more store closures could be in sight. No further details on the reductions were immediately provided.
“We are focused on creating shareholder value over the long term,” Cohen said in a brief keynote address at the start of the conference. “We are not here to make promises or hype, we are here to work.
Gamestop shares fell more than 12% after Monday’s meeting.
Gamestop’s annual shareholder meeting was originally scheduled for Thursday – but it was postponed due to a technical problem prevented many enthusiastic investors from tuning into the livestream. A spokesperson for Computershare, the company hosting the webcast, noted “unprecedented demand.”
That only fueled anticipation for what executives at the Grapevine, Texas-based company had to say. Many people took to social media over the weekend and early Monday to post information about the upcoming meeting, adding to the buzz.
In the center of craze for meme stocksGamestop saw a resurgence last month after Keith Gill, better known as “Roaring Kitty”, I came back online for the first time in three years.
All eyes are on whether Gamestop can make a comeback. Roaring Kitty returned to YouTube earlier this month to tell his hordes of followers that he still believes GameStop’s management team can turn around the ailing company. following a disappointing results report.
There is a long way to go. Gamestop managed to narrow its losses in the first quarter, but its revenue fell due to slowing sales of hardware and accessories, software and collectibles. Last week, GameStop also filed documents with securities regulators to sell up to 75 million shares to raise proceeds of nearly $2.14 billion.
