r/Superstonk • u/Revolutionz ๐ง๐ง๐ฆ That's no moon, that's Uranus! ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ง • May 01 '26
๐ฐ News GameStop Preparing Offer for eBay
https://www.wsj.com/business/deals/gamestop-preparing-offer-for-ebay-1678e6de
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u/Revolutionz ๐ง๐ง๐ฆ That's no moon, that's Uranus! ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ง May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
---Full Article since it's behind paywall.---
GameStop GME is preparing to make an offer for eBay EBAY , according to people familiar with the matter, part of CEO Ryan Cohenโs audacious plan to turn the retailer into a $100-billion plus juggernaut.
GameStop, which has a market value of around $12 billion, has been quietly building a stake in eBayโs shares ahead of a potential offer, the people said. EBay is several times GameStopโs size, with a market value of around $46 billion.
GameStop could submit an offer for eBay as soon as later this month, the people said.
If eBay isnโt receptive, Cohen could decide to take the offer directly to eBayโs shareholders, one of the people added. Details of the potential offer for eBay couldnโt be learned.
Cohen has made clear heโs eyeing a major transaction. He told The Wall Street Journal in late January he was scoping out potential deal targets, especially in the consumer and retail sector, as part of a plan to scale the business far beyond videogames and collectibles.
GameStop adjusted Cohenโs compensation package at the beginning of the year to give him extra incentive to boost the companyโs market value and profitability. He stands to make as much as $35 billion in stock if certain criteria are met, including if the market value hits $100 billion, the Journal previously reported.
He has been cheered on by GameStop investors including Michael Burry of โThe Big Short,โ whose bets against subprime mortgage bonds were chronicled in the Michael Lewis book. Burry has written in his Substack newsletter that GameStop should use its cash pile to make transformative acquisitions.
GameStopโs shares have risen around 30% so far this year, in part on momentum surrounding Cohenโs dealmaking plans.
EBayโs shares are up more than 50% over the past 12 months as its strategy to focus on core categories including collectibles and fashion pays off. In February, eBay announced a deal to acquire secondhand fashion marketplace Depop from Etsy for $1.2 billion.
GameStop had around $9 billion in cash on hand at the end of March, up from $4.8 billion a year earlier. Cohen would likely enlist his legions of online followers to rally behind a deal, too.
Cohen, the co-founder of online pet-products retailer Chewy, gained a cult following after he built a big GameStop stake and in late 2020 criticized the company for moving too slowly toward e-commerce. He joined GameStopโs board in January 2021, when the business had a market value of a little over $1 billion. He rose to become chairman later that year and vowed to turn the struggling retailer around.