GameStop shares fall as retailer reports loss during holiday quarter, says it will launch NFT marketplace

GameStop shares on Thursday fell more than 8% in extended trading, after the video game retailer reported an unexpected loss during the holiday quarter.

The video game retailer did not provide guidance for the coming year, but said it plans to launch a marketplace for non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, by the end of April.

In the fiscal fourth quarter, ended Jan. 29, the company reported a net loss of $147.5 million, or $1.94 per share, compared with a gain of $80.5 million, or $1.19 per share, a year earlier. That missed Wall Street’s expectations of 84 cents, according to Refinitiv consensus estimates. Adjusted loss per share was $1.86.

Total revenue grew to $2.25 billion, topping analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion.

The company will hold an earnings call at 5 p.m. ET. It has not provided a financial outlook since the pandemic began in March 2020. It has also not taken questions from analysts on the company’s earnings calls over the past year.

GameStop has been a target in the meme stock frenzy and has gotten a fresh slate of leaders who want to turn the brick-and-mortar chain into an e-commerce player. Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen was tapped to lead the company’s turnaround as chairman on the company’s board. He hired former Amazon executives, Matthew Furlong, and Mike Recupero, as CEO and COO, respectively.

Cohen has also gotten involved with another meme stock: Bed Bed & Beyond. He revealed a nearly 10% stake in the company earlier this month.

Its shares have swung wildly over the past year. Shares hit a 52-week low on Monday of $77.58 — less than one-fourth of the value that it had last June.

As of Thursday’s close, GameStop shares are down about 41% so far this year. Shares rose about 1% on Thursday to close at $87.70. The company’s market value is nearly $7 billion.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.