GameStop fired its CEO Matthew Furlong and appointed its board chairman Ryan Cohen as executive chairman effective immediately, the company said Wednesday.
Shares of GameStop dropped more than 20% in premarket trading Thursday.
The company announced the shake-up just as it reported its revenue dropped and its loss narrowed in its fiscal first quarter compared to the year-ago period.
GameStop didn’t provide a reason for the firing but noted the change in its quarterly securities filing.
“We believe the combination of these efforts to stabilize and optimize our core business and achieve sustained profitability while also focusing on capital allocation under Mr. Cohen’s leadership will further unlock long-term value creation for our stockholders,” the filing states.
Cohen took a stake in GameStop in 2020, and in January 2021 he and two other former Chewy executives were named to the retailer’s board as part of an agreement with the company’s management. His investment firm, RC Ventures, currently has an 11.9% stake in GameStop, according to filings.
In a separate securities filing, GameStop disclosed Furlong was fired on Monday and said he will be permitted to receive payments and benefits “associated with a termination without cause.” Furlong also resigned from the company’s board on the same day, which reduced it to just five members.
The filing noted Cohen will be in charge of capital allocation, evaluating potential investments and acquisitions and overseeing the managers of GameStop’s holdings.
In a cryptic tweet posted about a half an hour after Furlong’s firing was announced, Cohen wrote: “Not for long.”
The activist investor and Chewy founder is known for saying very little publicly and making vague statements online.
The decision to part ways with Furlong comes just months after GameStop reported its first quarterly profit in two years while he was at the helm.