(Reuters) – Ryan Cohen has bought GameStop stock worth $10 million, a securities filing showed on Tuesday, in a sign that the activist investor was trying to boost shareholder morale after the company lost its fifth CEO in five years last week.
Shares of the company jumped 7.7% in early trading. They are down nearly 80% from their peak of $120.75 hit during the meme-stock frenzy of 2021.
The company’s board last week ousted Matt Furlong, a former Amazon.com executive who was handpicked to lead the largely brick-and-mortar operations company’s online expansion, fanning concerns about the videogame retailer’s ailing business.
Furlong’s exit came as the company struggles to turn a corner after it posted a bigger-than-expected loss for the latest three months and missed revenue expectations, with net sales falling for a fourth straight quarter last week.
Cohen – who owns about 12% of the company through his firm, RC Ventures – pushed the company to pursue a strategic review of its business in 2020 and was elected chairman in June 2021.
Cohen promised investors a digital pivot, with a focus on e-commerce, but the company has struggled to realize the goal.
(Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
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