GameStop Stock Selloff Explained - Buy Chance or Value Trap?
Video game retailer GameStop Corp. GME shares had unpredictable price swings in 2021 due to a short squeeze, followed by a steady decline. GameStop's shares recently plunged due to lower quarterly revenues and investor dissatisfaction with the company's new capital raise policy. Despite this, the company cut costs and improved profitability. Does GME stock present a good buying opportunity or is it a value trap?
GameStop's latest fundraising initiative led to a drop of over 20% in its share price on Thursday. The video game retailer was planning to raise $1.75 billion in debt financing from investors, its second such move in recent times.
GameStop raised funds for general corporate needs, with investments linked to their Investment Policy. The funds were likely used to buy Bitcoins (BTC), which is consistent with GameStop's policy update in March.
GameStop recently raised funds to purchase 4,710 Bitcoin, valued at more than $500 million. This shift from selling video games to investing in Bitcoin was aimed at enhancing the company's value and increasing liquidity to meet financial needs.
However, GameStop's recent decision to acquire more Bitcoin was not well-received by investors. This is because Bitcoin is a volatile asset; it performs exceptionally well when it continues to rise, but when it drops, it can pose significant risks.
GameStop is emulating Strategy Incorporated MSTR, previously known as MicroStrategy, which has acquired nearly 530,000 Bitcoins worth more than $45 billion since 2020. Strategy's shares surged over 2,500% in the last five years, benefiting from Bitcoin's bullish trend, particularly post the November Presidential election.
GameStop's investment in Bitcoin could be beneficial, but its impact on revenue growth remains uncertain. In the first quarter of 2025, GameStop's revenues decreased by 17% compared to the previous year. According to the latest SEC filing, GameStop's sales fell by 28% to $3.8 billion in 2024 from $5.3 billion in 2023. The company's revenues decreased due to shifting customer interest from physical to digital video games.
GameStop, though once a meme stock craze of the early 2020s, now lacks revenue growth while facing business challenges. Without new revenue-boosting strategies in place, it's sensible to avoid high-risk investments in GameStop, even though shares are trading at a discount.
Generally, a value trap occurs when a cheaply priced stock has problems like falling earnings and weak management, but this doesn't apply to GameStop.
GameStop faced more troubles during the pandemic as people stayed at home and avoided stores. However, GameStop's management made strategic moves to cut costs and increase profitability by closing stores in various countries like Switzerland, Austria, Ireland, Italy, and the United States. They are now planning to do the same in Canada and France this year.
GameStop posted almost $45 million in profits in the first quarter of 2025, a substantial year-over-year improvement, and has a 29.7% debt-to-equity ratio, lower than the Gaming industry's average of 186.4%, indicating financial stability. This reliance on shareholders' equity over borrowed capital could keep stakeholders interested for potential gains.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
For now, GameStop has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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