GameStop (NYSE:GME) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

GameStop (NYSE:GME) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised GameStop from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $13.50.

GameStop Stock Down 2.1%

GameStop stock opened at $22.10 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $23.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.11. The company has a quick ratio of 9.77, a current ratio of 15.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. GameStop has a twelve month low of $19.93 and a twelve month high of $35.81. The company has a market capitalization of $9.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.46 and a beta of 2.12.

GameStop (NYSE:GME) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 24th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.12. GameStop had a net margin of 11.53% and a return on equity of 12.47%. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.47 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that GameStop will post 0.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other GameStop news, CEO Ryan Cohen bought 500,000 shares of GameStop stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $21.12 per share, for a total transaction of $10,560,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 37,847,842 shares in the company, valued at $799,346,423.04. This represents a 1.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel Mark Haymond Robinson sold 12,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total value of $256,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 105,155 shares in the company, valued at $2,208,255. This represents a 10.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 517,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,925,150 and have sold 23,152 shares valued at $480,059. 8.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of GameStop

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GME. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC increased its position in shares of GameStop by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 92,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,851,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in GameStop by 39.2% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in GameStop by 0.5% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 96,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its stake in GameStop by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 131,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,574,000 after buying an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in GameStop by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 29.21% of the company’s stock.

About GameStop

GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) is a global specialty retailer focused on video games, gaming consoles, consumer electronics and related accessories. The company operates a network of physical retail stores alongside an e-commerce platform, offering new and pre-owned products spanning the latest game software, hardware, collectibles and lifestyle merchandise. GameStop’s retail footprint is complemented by digital marketplaces for trade-ins and online purchases, as well as a membership program that provides exclusive content and rewards.

Originally founded in 1984 as Babbage’s in Dallas, Texas, the company adopted the GameStop name in 1999 following its merger with Software Etc.