GameStop’s board declared a 4-for-1 stock split.
GameStop (GME) – Get GameStop Corporation Report, the videogame retailer and prominent Wall Street meme company, said the board declared a 4-for-1 split of the common stock.
The split of the Grapevine, Texas, company’s stock is effective after the close of trading on July 21.
Shareholders of record on July 18 will receive three additional shares of the company for each share they hold on that date.
Trading in the split-adjusted stock will begin on July 22.
GameStop was at the heart of Wall Street’s meme trading phenomenon in early 2021.
The company, which operates video game rental and resale businesses out of mall-based stores, had seen its shares heavily shorted at the time. Retail investors coordinated efforts to force so-called short squeezes on the stock by bidding up prices. That had the effect of forcing those who had sold the stock short to buy shares at higher prices to cover their losses, leading to sharp price spikes.
GameStop shares have continued to trade at levels far above where they were before early 2021. The stock closed the regular session July 6, off $2.80 at $117.43. Shares gained nearly 8% in after-hours trading following the stock-split announcement.
As of mid June about 21% of the company’s float had been shorted. While the number is significant, it was down from the previous month by nearly a million shares.
GameStop and fellow meme stock name AMC Entertainment (AMC) – Get AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. Class A Report have both managed to improve their balance sheets and launch new initiatives since the trading mania of early 2021.
GameStop has moved to take advantage of the notoriety it acquired by launching new virtual product offerings including non-fungible tokens, or NFTs.
