GameStop Stock Plunges 10% After CEO’s Awkward CNBC Stumble — Is the Meme King Losing His Crown?

These days, watching GameStop has an almost theatrical quality. On the surface, Friday’s closing price of $23.97, down almost five percent, is just another red day on a chart that has seen a lot. Beneath the numbers, however, is a story that resembles a play that keeps adding scenes that no one requested rather than a typical corporate drama. Tube socks are featured in the most recent scene. Yes, the very man attempting to purchase tube socks listed them on eBay for $14,000.

That man is Ryan Cohen, the CEO of GameStop and something of a folk hero to some on the internet. He revealed earlier this week that GameStop was making an unsolicited $55.5 billion offer for eBay, a business that is about four times larger than his own. After that, he set up an eBay store and began selling old games, store signs, a mug, a hat, and a painting of his late dog Tylee, who was reportedly the inspiration behind Chewy, the pet retailer he sold to PetSmart for more than $3 billion. “I’m selling stuff on eBay to pay for eBay,” he wrote. It’s the kind of statement that works well on social media but not so well on Wall Street.

The market took notice. When Andrew Ross Sorkin questioned Cohen on CNBC’s Squawk Box about the approximately $16 billion difference between the bid and GameStop’s available cash and financing, Cohen simply responded, “I don’t understand your question.” As a result, shares fell ten percent on Monday. It was difficult not to wince a little as you watched that exchange—not because Cohen appeared agitated, but rather because he didn’t. He simply kept saying “half cash, half stock,” as though that were a financing strategy in and of itself.

Less generosity has been shown by analysts. As many have noted, the math doesn’t add up. In addition to having roughly $9 billion in cash, GameStop already owns a 5% share in eBay and has an unconfirmed but “highly confident” $20 billion debt commitment from TD Bank. That brings the total to about $40 billion. The remaining $16 billion would most likely come from the issuance of new stock, which typically dilutes current shareholders. This strategy is typically seen with suspicion when the smaller fish is attempting to swallow the larger one. In a straightforward statement, Neil Saunders of GlobalData described the proposal as a David-trying-to-buy-Goliath strategy intended, in part, to give David relevance.

Michael Burry is another. According to reports, the investor made famous by The Big Short was optimistic about GameStop and even suggested that it might turn into a “instant Berkshire.” He sold after the interview on Monday. “Never confuse debt for creativity,” he stated. This line has the potential to frame the entire episode.

However, many skeptics have previously been burned by the habit of discounting GameStop. In fiscal 2025, the company reported $418.4 million in net income. Since 2020, the number of its stores has decreased by about half, and it is, in some ways, the leanest it has been in years. On paper, Cohen’s proposal—using GameStop’s 1,600 physical locations to verify products, facilitate live commerce, and compete with Amazon—isn’t crazy. Simply put, it’s a long way from the company’s current location. He seems to be playing a much longer game than the quarterly numbers indicate, and it’s unclear exactly what that game entails.

The stock will continue to be what it has been since 2021—less of a financial tool and more of a cultural dispute—regardless of whether the eBay bid succeeds, fails, or fades into the background of another GameStop news cycle. Investors who have faith in Cohen will continue to do so. Skeptics will continue to tally. And somewhere, a pair of Adidas crew socks will discreetly close for more than $14,000, as though to remind everyone that the rules have never really applied here.