GameStop (NYSE:GME) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 21,576,149 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 72% from the previous session’s volume of 12,552,792 shares.The stock last traded at $24.17 and had previously closed at $28.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GME has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded GameStop from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $13.50 price target on shares of GameStop in a research report on Wednesday.

GameStop Trading Up 0.2%

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $27.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 123.20 and a beta of -0.69.

GameStop (NYSE:GME) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.13. GameStop had a net margin of 1.45% and a return on equity of 2.11%. The company had revenue of $732.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $754.23 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.12) EPS. GameStop’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that GameStop Corp. will post 0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ryan Cohen acquired 500,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $21.55 per share, for a total transaction of $10,775,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 37,347,842 shares in the company, valued at $804,845,995.10. This represents a 1.36% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Alain Attal bought 10,000 shares of GameStop stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.75 per share, with a total value of $257,500.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 572,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,740,948. This trade represents a 1.78% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 515,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,140,200 over the last quarter. 12.28% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GME. Bayforest Capital Ltd boosted its holdings in GameStop by 654.6% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 15,212 shares of the company’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 13,196 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of GameStop by 9.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,131,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,255,000 after buying an additional 94,892 shares in the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association grew its holdings in GameStop by 4.1% during the first quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 26,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $569,000 after acquiring an additional 1,044 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in GameStop by 33.2% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 262,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,851,000 after acquiring an additional 65,325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in GameStop by 312.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $623,000 after acquiring an additional 22,297 shares in the last quarter. 29.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About GameStop

GameStop Corp., a specialty retailer, provides games and entertainment products through its stores and ecommerce platforms in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe. The company sells new and pre-owned gaming platforms; accessories, such as controllers, gaming headsets, and virtual reality products; new and pre-owned gaming software; and in-game digital currency, digital downloadable content, and full-game downloads.