• 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

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