GameStop raises more than $2 billion by selling 75 million shares, capitalizing on meme frenzy
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GameStop raised more than $2 billion in a recent stock sale as the video game company took advantage of a revived meme rally sparked by the return of trader Roaring Kitty.
The retailer announced Tuesday evening that it completed an at-the-market equity offering, selling the maximum number of 75 million shares to raise proceeds of $2.14 billion. GameStop said it intends to use the money for general corporate purposes, which may include acquisitions and investments.
The stock dipped more than 1% in premarket trading Wednesday. Shares continued its rollercoaster ride this week, up 8% so far.
Wedbush GameStop analyst Michael Pachter estimated that the sale had an average share price of $28.50, implying that it coincided with the big sell-off during meme stock leader Roaring Kitty's Youtube livestream last Friday.
GameStop shares dropped 40% on Friday after the firm released its earnings report days ahead of schedule, reporting that sales dropped 29% in the first quarter.
Roaring Kitty, AKA Keith Gill, hosted his first livestream in a few years that day, which seemed to exacerbate the sell off. Gill reiterated his previous investing thesis and offered little new reasoning behind his large stake. He revealed that he did not have any institutional backers and the GameStop positions he had shared in screenshots were his only bets.
Pachter has an underperform rating on GameStop and a 12-month price target of $11, which is more than 60% lower than Tuesday's close of $30.49.
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