- Gamestop stock jumped as much as 7% Thursday after it announced Ryan Cohen as its new CEO.
- The billionaire investor will not receive any compensation for the role as president, chief executive, and chairman.
- Earlier this year, Gamestop fired CEO Matthew Furlong, a former Amazon executive.
Shares of Gamestop climbed as much as 7% Thursday after the company announced billionaire activist would take the helm as chief executive officer for zero salary.
The stock pared some of its gains to move about 2.7% higher at the open, changing hands at roughly $17.64.
Cohen, who also has roles as chairman and president of Gamestop, is the largest investor in the brand that became a meme-stock phenomenon during the pandemic. He has a net-worth of about $3.2 billion, and owns a 12.1% stake in the retailer.
In the press release, Gamestop said Cohen "will not receive compensation" for the role.
Three months ago, the company fired then-CEO Matthew Furlong, a former Amazon executive. In the most recent quarter, Gamestop saw larger than expected losses and missed Wall Street estimates.
The company is worth about $5 billion — about $3 billion less than it was when Furlong departed.
Cohen first took a stake in Gamestop in 2020, and joined its board in January 2021. That June, he took over as chairman, and the appointment helped spark a huge surge in the stock.
Shares of Gamestop peaked at $483 in January 2021 as a retail-driven short-squeeze play netted huge gains for everyday traders and piled billions of dollars in losses up for some hedge funds.