Game retailer GameStop plans to acquire a public company, CEO Ryan Cohen said. The news comes from an exclusive interview with the billionaire CEO by The Wall Street Journal, in which Cohen discussed his plans to achieve the $35 billion revenue target the company set for him last year.
To achieve this goal, he must increase GameStop's market value to $100 billion. As of this writing, the retailer has a market capitalization of $10.68 billion, and even at the height of the meme stock craze in January 2021, its market cap peaked at just $33.7 billion.
Cohen told the Wall Street Journal that any potential acquisition targets would be "large companies," adding: "This move will end up being either a stroke of genius or a complete nonsense." The executive is currently focusing on companies in the consumer goods or retail industries and has already targeted several companies.
GameStop currently holds approximately $9 billion in cash and liquid assets that can be used for this acquisition.
When it comes to companies in the retail industry, Cohen said: "There are a lot of companies out there that are budding, but their management teams are dead and doing nothing."
He also said: "I am not reviving GameStop just to stop there."
Affected by Cohen's remarks, GameStop's shares rose 3.5% in early trading yesterday.
In early 2026, there was news that GameStop would close a large number of offline stores in the United States. As of the writing of this article, the GSClosing blog, which tracks the company's store closures, shows that the number of stores confirmed to be closed nationwide reaches 470.
In fiscal year 2024, GameStop has closed 590 stores in the United States and announced its withdrawal from the Irish, Swiss, Austrian and German markets. The company has also sold its Italian operations and is currently seeking buyers for its French and Canadian subsidiaries.
In early January this year, there was also news that GameStop would close its EB Games stores in New Zealand. The company has since confirmed that all of its remaining 38 stores there will be closed.