GameStop has risen 15% after-hours upon an official announcement of their intentions to request a stock split.

Revealed via Form 8-K Filing, GameStop is planning on asking for shareholder approval at the upcoming 2022 Annual Meeting on an increase in the number of authorized shares of Class A common stock from 300,000,000 to 1,000,000,000.

If granted, GameStop will file an amendment to the Company’s Charter Amendment in order to implement a stock split of the Company’s Class A common stock in the form of a stock dividend and provide flexibility for future corporate needs.

So what?

For nearly a year, retail investors have speculated if GameStop would ever engage in a stock split. Even GMEdd.com published tongue-in-cheek conspiracy when Chairman Ryan Cohen shared a photo of himself with split chopsticks under his nose.

Right now, GameStop has 76.3M outstanding shares, with existing authorization up to 300,000,000 shares. The company is asking for approval to raise that authorized cap to 1,000,000,000, indicating an intention that they are likely seeking between a 4:1 to 13:1 split.

GameStop’s Form 8-k Filing from March 31st

GameStop’s proposed stock split plan would be completed through a stock dividend, which awards existing shareholders with new shares.

Unlike a typical stock split where already held shares are divided, in a stock dividend additional shares are allotted to existing shareholders.

anything else?

GameStop also intends to request stockholder approval at the Annual Meeting for a new incentive plan to support future compensatory equity issuances. 

If the 2022 Equity Plan is approved by stockholders, it will replace the current GameStop Corp. 2019 Incentive Plan, and 8,000,000 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, plus any shares subject to the 2019 Plan that expire, are forfeited, cancelled, terminated or settled in cash after the 2022 Plan is effective, will be available for issuance under the 2022 Plan. 

GameStop’s Board of Directors has approved both stockholder proposals, but the stock dividend will be contingent on final Board approval.

FOR MORE, READ GAMESTOP’S March 31, 2022 8-K FILING.

The new GameStop NFT Beta landing page now states the marketplace is almost here, and invites users to beta test now.

Video game retailer GameStop has spent the last year undergoing a tech-centric transformation, with a premium NFT marketplace being at the core of this transition. This newfound interest for the brick-and-mortar was initially revealed through job postings alluding to blockchain developments at the company dating back to April of 2021.

GMEdd.com first unearthed the existence of GameStop’s Official NFT project one month later, in May 2021, upon discovering a website that didn’t detail much besides a potential slogan for the project, and ever since then investors have speculated what GameStop NFT entails.

By October 27th, 2021, GMEdd.com published source code that revealed Loopring, an Ethereum Layer 2 Protocol, had been hard at work building GameStop an NFT Marketplace of their own.

Loopring’s GitHub Code from October 2021.

Prior to this, digital breadcrumbs had led us to that same point, detailing how Loopring’s technology could power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

With Immutable, another Ethereum Layer 2 NFT Marketplace provider, announced as a preferred partner in January 2022, GameStop investors were uncertain what role Loopring still held in this deal.

Now, GameStop has launched a new beta page for the incoming NFT Marketplace. Alongside this, an announcement by Loopring answers some questions, as well as allows users to connect their wallets and beta test features for a launch that is coming soon.

Loopring Does the Honors

In a Medium.com post on March 23, 2022, at 4:29 AM EST, the Loopring Protocol announced that the future of NFTs are here and they’re powered by Ethereum’s second layer.

Loopring states that they are thrilled to announce that the long-awaited GameStop NFT Marketplace (beta) is now LIVE, with the full NFT Marketplace coming shortly, built atop none other than Loopring L2.

Loopring Protocol’s Medium Post on March 23rd, 2022.

“GameStop, in partnership with Loopring, has the opportunity to cement itself at the forefront of this new NFT + gaming paradigm and become THE destination for new global digital economies.”

To accomplish this, the new GameStop NFT Marketplace is reportedly built atop the second layer of Ethereum, specifically Loopring L2, to ensure that users receive the strongest digital property rights, anchored by a secure, decentralized, and a credibly neutral environment, like Ethereum. 

Loopring L2 inherits Ethereum’s self-custodial security while abstracting away costly gas-fees, leaving no one priced out.

Loopring also acknowledges that GameStop choosing to build on L2 first, bypassing L1 altogether, marks a huge step forward for the future of NFTs and an important moment for Ethereum scaling.

“Loopring has built the rails for creators to deliver high performance applications that rival the speeds and scalability of Web2, while also empowering users to receive provable ownership and control over their assets in Web3. These massive speed improvements and lower costs open up the design space to create all sorts of new use-cases for NFTs + gaming that were unimaginable prior.”

To wrap up the announcement, Loopring invites fans to get early beta access at beta.nft.gamestop.com, to set up usernames + profiles, make deposits, and be prepared for the full launch of the official marketplace coming soon.

Daniel Wang’s tweet on March 23rd at 4:57 AM EST.

The founder of Loopring, Daniel Wang, also took the opportunity to thank GameStop for the opportunity to work on multiple blockchain products. He states that this is certainly not the end of the partnership, and Loopring will continue to help GME polish their user experience.

A first look

GameStop, rockets, and the moon are three things very well-known to retail investors and GME aficionados alike. The GameStop NFT Beta landing page begins by marking three key elements that have become staples in the minds of traders across meme stocks and crypto for years. 

Upon first glance, the user is hinted towards a “Connect” button highlighting the opportunity to link a cryptocurrency wallet, which is fairly typical of existing NFT platforms such as OpenSea and Coinbase.

Following a wallet connection (we opted for MetaMask), users are invited to customize their profiles and make deposits.

GameStop NFT’s profile page.

The profile customization page allows users to set a username, choose an NFT profile picture, write a short bio, and attach an email address along with Twitter and Reddit usernames.

Users can also navigate to their owned, liked, and hidden NFT collections.

When depositing funds, the options are to buy ETH with a card, deposit ETH from your wallet, or ask a friend to transfer to your account.

The process of starting a deposit on the GameStop NFT Beta

Notably, deposits from Ethereum L1 are converted into Loopring L2 by default.

“Once on Layer 2, there are no more gas fees to transact!”

When users visit their account history, they will likely see a screen that shows “Nothing here yet,” we can assume this will display transaction history in the future.

GameStop NFT Beta’s Account History page

With over 1 million NFTs minted on Loopring L2 since early 2022, the page invites users to check the Loopring Layer 2 Explorer, further indicating the involvement of Loopring in this NFT Marketplace. 

Besides this, no other notable features are currently visible in the beta.

While the marketplace itself remains hidden, digital sleuths can tweak the code a bit to start showing listings, revealing what the final product may look like.

GameStop NFT’s hidden Explore page on March 23rd.

Some NFTs by Miguelgarest are displayed, an NFT artist who has been quietly working on new projects, alongside the GameStop NFT Arcade Machine, all of which are listed as not for sale.

some things aren’t so immutable

With nods to Loopring all over the GameStop NFT Beta, investors are left in the dark on Immutable’s role, as many thought the Australia-based Ethereum Layer 2 NFT Marketplace would be taking over the project entirely.

On the issue, Byron Wiebe, Loopring’s Head of Community, has again shared his personal thoughts on Loopring’s Official Discord server.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:02 AM EST.

Byron states that Loopring has been working with GameStop for almost a year now to build and integrate this marketplace, fully built on Loopring L2.

“No IMX.”

Byron goes as far as to share that he believes Immutable (IMX) has been a little disingenuous with their marketing.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:11 AM EST.

The Loopring Head of Community believes that Immutable’s marketing materials were “pretty shitty” and not true at all.

“Their marketing materials where they tried to position this upcoming announcement of ours to just be an “alpha” was pretty shitty on their part to be honest.”

According to Byron, as far as he is aware, there has been zero “technical work” done with IMX to this point, and it has just all been marketing, with GameStop doing “something” with them after the Loopring L2-based marketplace is fully live.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:37 AM EST.

Byron also states that while he does not want to speak on behalf of GameStop, the marketplace was “genuinely supposed to be Q4, but had some unfortunate delays at the last minute.”

Over on the Immutable Discord, investors in the Ethereum Layer2 with 88% of it’s supply uncirculated are demanding the truth. 

Nigel Lee, Immutable’s Strategy and Operations Lead, is trying to fan the flames, stating that Immutable has never denied that Loopring was involved.

Nigel Lee on Discord on March 23rd at 6:20 AM EST.

Nigel even asks the naysayers, “Where’s the value talking about competitors?” in regards to questioning over Loopring’s clear involvement in GameStop NFT. 

Immutable’s Strategy and Operations Lead claims that IMX brings a network of games and partners they are working with to the table, and that the team has never denied Loopring’s involvement.

In a Discord Stage hosted at 7:45 AM EST, Robbie Ferguson, the Co-Founder and President of Immutable, was quick to insist that GameStop approved all of their marketing materials and nothing nefarious was at play.

GMEdd.com did not have any overpriced consultants available to ask whether this was the right strategy for Immutable.

What now?

GameStop’s retail investors will almost certainly spend the remainder of the week scouring through the GameStop NFT Beta, searching for clues as to what the marketplace will be like.

Some are even speculating that the website’s code may have accidentally revealed the launch date for GameStop NFT as “Astronaut day,” a national holiday on May 5th.

Code revealed on the GameStop NFT Beta on March 23rd, 2021.

Although this date does fall within with the recently announced launch before the close of Q2 2022, veteran GameStop investors are experienced enough to know to not rely on dates hidden within code.

While GameStop’s NFT Beta only allows users to create accounts, deposit funds, and claim usernames at the moment, we urge those curious to check the platform out themselves, as GameStop gears up to soon deliver power to the players.


JOIN GMEDD.COM’S OFFICIAL DISCORD SERVER TO CHAT ABOUT THIS ARTICLE, GAMESTOP’S TRANSFORMATION, AND MORE.
CONSIDER DONATING TO SUPPORT RESEARCH AND BUY OUR CONTRIBUTORS A COFFEE

Source: Loopring on MediumGameStop NFT Beta, Loopring on Discord, Immutable on Discord

GameStop rose over 15% in after-hours trading on news that Ryan Cohen has increased his stake in the gaming retailer for the first time in over a year.

Early GameStop investors are feeling deja-vu after the co-founder of Chewy bought more GameStop today.

Prior to today, Ryan Cohen owned 9,001,000 shares of NYSE:GME that was purchased during his activist campaign to take over the struggling brick-and-mortar.

the latest

Revealed via SEC 13-D filing, Ryan Cohen has purchased 100,000 shares of GameStop through his activist investment firm RC Ventures LLC.

RC Ventures’ CUSIP No. 36467W109

Ryan Cohen purchased shares of GameStop as low as $96.81 and as high as $108.92.

To acquire 100,000 shares with a cost basis of $101.76, the Chairman spent $10,176,343.32.

word on the street…

Retail investors had been pondering when the Chairman, who had recently begun to talk a bigger talk, would add to his stake.


Ryan Cohen’s tweet on March 22, 2022.

Commenting on this, Cohen tweeted, “I put my money where my mouth is.”

This follows a string of tweets from Cohen regarding shorts and short sellers such as, “Good use of taxpayer $ is the government cracking down on hedge fund short sellers,” and “Short sellers are the dumb stormtroopers of the investing galaxy.”

Moving on the offensive once again, Cohen has revealed that his work with GameStop is far from over.

FOR MORE, READ RC Ventures’ March 22, 2022 13-d FILING.

Included in the release of today’s GameStop Q4 2021 financial results was the reveal of GameStop’s intended launch deadline for the incoming GameStop NFT Marketplace.

GMEdd.com first unearthed the existence of GameStop’s Official NFT project in May 2021 upon discovering a website that didn’t detail much besides a potential slogan for the project, and ever since then investors have speculated what GameStop NFT entails.

Prior to this, digital breadcrumbs had led us to that same point, detailing how Loopring’s technology could power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

With Immutable revealed as a technology partner in the potentially groundbreaking gaming marketplace in February, progress has undoubtedly been expedited.

GameStop has announced an expected launch date of the NFT Marketplace by close of Q2 2022 (July 31, 2022).

Business strategy

GameStop reported they are on a strategic path to fully leverage the company’s unique position and brand in gaming. The strategic plan is designed to optimize the core business while at the same time, pursuing strategic initiatives to transform GameStop for the future by expanding the company’s addressable market and product offerings to drive growth in the gaming and entertainment industries.

GameStop states their focus is on transforming into a customer-obsessed technology company to delight gamers, and is actively focused on:

Establishing ecommerce excellence.

GameStop aims to be the leading destination for games and entertainment across all channels and will scale up ecommerce operations to make the most convenient solution for customers. This includes app & site redesigns, improvements in fulfillment and delivery times, better product availability across all channels, and a further improved customer service experience.

Expanding selection to deliver a market-leading offering in gaming & entertainment.

Continue investing in expanding product offering to relevant categories for our customers, including becoming a leader in PC gaming, virtual reality, and other gaming products.

Leveraging existing strengths and assets.

Grow GameStop’s presence in the gaming community and increase market share through enhancing the value of the loyalty program and Game Informer assets while also expanding the scope of the buy, sell, and trade business to support expanded offerings.

Investing in new growth opportunities.

As the company scales and expands core offerings, GameStop will simultaneously invest in additional growth, including blockchain, digital assets (including non-fungible tokens, Web 3.0 technology, and new destination formats for retail stores. 

GameStop states they believe these future transformation efforts are an important aspect of the company’s continued business to enable long-term value creation for company shareholders.

Rollout Strategy

With Ryan Cohen insistent on not talking a big game, little remains known about GameStop’s NFT Marketplace rollout strategy.

“We know some people want us to lay out a whole detailed plan today, but that’s not gonna happen.You won’t find us talking a big game, making a bunch of lofty promises, or telegraphing our strategy to the competition. That’s the philosophy we adopted at Chewy.” — Ryan Cohen in June 2021

On March 4th, Robbie Ferguson, the Co Founder and President of Immutable, shared the first phase of the intended rollout on Reddit.

Robbie shared this graphic on Reddit.

Robbie also stated that Immutable is going to be dropping content over the next few weeks diving into what integration will look like, details on Immutable and GameStop’s vision for the space, and answering questions fans and investors and might have.

FOR MORE, READ GAMESTOP’S March 17, 2022 10-K FILING.

GameStop Corp. today released financial results on the company’s Investor Relations platform for the fourth quarter ended January 29th, 2022.

The gaming retailer in the midst of transformation will also host an investor conference call at 5:00 pm ET to review the company’s financial results. This call and any supplemental information can be accessed at GameStop’s investor relations home page.

The Company also announced it intends to launch its marketplace for non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) by the end of the second quarter of fiscal year 2022.

The Company’s Form 10-K and supplemental information can be found at http://investor.GameStop.com

Fourth QUARTER OVERVIEW

Generated net sales of $2.254 billion for the quarter, compared to $2.122 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020 and $2.194 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Established new and expanded brand relationships, including with PC gaming companies such as Alienware, Corsair and Lenovo, that contributed to sales growth in the quarter.

Grew PowerUp Rewards Pro members by 32% on a year-over-year basis, taking total membership to approximately 5.8 million.

Entered into a partnership with Immutable X that is intended to support the development of GameStop’s NFT marketplace and provide the Company with up to $150 million in IMX tokens upon achievement of certain milestones.

Launched a redesigned app, which includes an enhanced user interface, improved scalability for a larger product catalog and more functionality to support exclusive offers and promotions.

Hired dozens of additional individuals with experience in areas such as blockchain gaming, ecommerce and technology, product refurbishment and operations.

full year overview

Generated net sales of $6.011 billion for the fiscal year, compared to $5.090 billion for fiscal year 2020.

Expanded the product catalog to include a broader set of consumer electronics, PC gaming equipment and refurbished hardware.

Made significant and long-term investments in the Company’s fulfillment network, systems and teams.

Established new offices in Seattle, Washington and Boston, Massachusetts, which are technology hubs with established talent markets.

Raised more than $1.67 billion in capital and eliminated all of the Company’s long-term debt, other than a $44.6 million low-interest, unsecured term loan associated with the French government’s response to COVID-19.

Ended the fiscal year with $1.271 billion in cash and cash equivalents and $915 million in inventory, compared to $635 million in cash and $602.5 million in inventory at the end of fiscal year 2020. Increased investments in inventory reflect the Company’s focus on meeting heightened demand and mitigating supply chain headwinds.

WEBCAST AND CONFERENCE CALL INFORMATION

The webcast with management is scheduled for March 17, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. ET to discuss the Company’s fourth quarter activities and financial results. This call, along with supplemental information, can also be accessed at GameStop’s Investor Relations. The phone number for the call is 877-451-6152 and the confirmation code is 13725350. This webcast will be archived for two months on GameStop’s investor relations website.

Source: GameStop Newsroom, Form 10-k

GameStop Corp., today announced that it will report fourth quarter and full year fiscal 2021 results after the market closes on Thursday, March 17, 2022.

The gaming retailer in the midst of transformation will host an investor conference call at 5:00 pm ET on the same day to review the company’s financial results. This call and any supplemental information can be accessed at GameStop’s investor relations home page.

WHERE TO TUNE IN

The phone number for the investor conference call is 877-451-6152 and the confirmation code is 13725350. The conference call will be archived for two months on GameStop’s corporate website.

GMEdd.com had hosted livestreams for prior conference calls, as viewership often surpasses what GameStop’s systems can handle.

For Q1 and Q2 2021 Earnings, GameStop streamed the report on their official YouTube channel, which remain the company’s most viewed videos; a testament to the devotion of the company’s retail investor base.

We advise all GameStop investors follow @GMEdd on Twitter for updates.

THE SIGNIFICANCE

This will mark the third earnings call since the departure of former Chief Executive Officer George Sherman and the board overhaul.

While Ryan Cohen announced at the 2021 Annual Shareholder’s Meeting that the company does not plan to talk a big game, investors will anticipate some direction or announcements regarding GameStop NFT from the aspiring technology company under new leadership.

The Cohen-instated CEO Matt Furlong, a former Amazon executive, will likely speak during the majority of the conference call, if tradition continues.


GameStop Chairman Ryan Cohen says that Bed Bath & Beyond’s strategy is failing to stem sustained market losses.

In a turn of events nobody could have anticipated, Cara Lombardo of the Wall Street Journal has reported that GameStop Chairman Ryan Cohen has purchased a 9.8% stake in Bed Bath and Beyond through RC Ventures.

The founder of Chewy is reportedly pushing the housewares retailer to streamline its strategy and explore strategic alternatives.

The Wall Street Journal headline on March 6th 2021.

The Turnaround

The chain has a turnaround plan that includes reducing the number of products in its stores and launching new private-label brands. But this plan left it vulnerable to supply-chain issues roiling the retail industry and caused it to cede more sales to rivals such as Amazon.com Inc. and Target Corp. 

Mr. Cohen says in the letter that Bed Bath & Beyond’s strategy is failing to stem sustained market share losses, noting that core sales dropped 14% from a year ago in the most recent quarter.

The Guidance

Cohen urges the company to take two main steps: narrow the focus of its turnaround plan and maintain the right inventory mix to meet demand, and explore a separation of the Buybuy Baby chain or a sale of the entire company.

The Chewy co-founder writes that given Buybuy Baby’s growth trajectory, it could be worth several billion dollars. He also writes that the entire company could be better off in the hands of a private-equity firm.

Cohen adds Bed Bath and Beyond should better align leadership compensation with results.

Mr. Cohen wraps up the letter by stating that given his focus on GameStop, he isn’t in a position to become a Bed Bath & Beyond director himself, but he doesn’t rule out his firm nominating directors if necessary.

“Given that I am the Chairman of GameStop and overseeing a systematic transformation, I am not in a position to join Bed Bath’s Board and personally drive the initiatives outlined in this letter. This does not mean, however, that RC Ventures will not seek to hold the Board and management accountable if necessary.” — Ryan Cohen

The window to nominate directors to the company’s board is open now and closes mid-March.